House price 'mini-BOOM' sees £11,000 added to value of UK houses

Annual price growth accelerated to five per cent in August put the cost of the average three bedroom semi at £226,000 – a monthly rise of £1,180 and up from £215,000 in the same month last year, according to the latest data from the Office for National Statistics and the Land Registry.

The North-West of England recorded the highest rise across England and Wales up 6.5 per cent in the year to August 2017. 

The East of England, East Midlands and South-West all saw rises of 6.4 per cent.

Alex Gosling, chief executive of online estate agents HouseSimple.com, said the summer’s surprisingly strong price growth was supported by low levels of new properties coming onto the market.

“Annual price growth has only ticked up slightly, but it’s noticeable that on a regional level there are pockets of the country which are experiencing mini property booms,” he noted.

“Some areas like Corby, Wellingborough, and East Northamptonshire, which are neighbours on the map, have enjoyed some of the highest property price growth of anywhere in the country over the past 12 months.

“These areas are likely playing catch-up. They may have lagged behind many towns in terms of price growth since 2008, but that now counts in their favour as families are moving to these areas because of the affordable property stock and commutable distance to London.

“In London, although price growth is stuttering, trendy Camden and Hackney have bucked the trend. Both boroughs have seen double digit price growth over the past 12 months, more than four times the London average.”

The lowest annual growth was in London, where prices increased by 2.6 per cent over the year to £484,362, marking the ninth consecutive month when price growth in the capital has remained below the UK average. 

The North East, at 3.7 per cent, saw the second slowest growth.

Prices in the City of London, the heart of the capital’s financial district, fell by 5.6 per cent over the year, the biggest fall in the UK apart from Aberdeenshire. 

While the low oil price has hit communities dependent on the North Sea oil industry.

The ONS figures underline the enormous differences in property prices across the UK. 

In August 2017, the most expensive borough to live in in the UK was Kensington and Chelsea, where the cost of an average house was £1.2million. 

In contrast, the cheapest area to purchase a property was Blaenau Gwent, where an average house cost £82,000.

Jeremy Duncombe, of Legal & General Mortgage Club, said: “Annual prices are consistently rising as more buyers chase fewer properties. 

“Escalated by a critical lack of housing stock, this trend is only set to continue if more affordable housing is not built. 

“As speculation around the autumn budget begins to build up, we hope there will be a genuine answer to boost supply that gives everyone a realistic chance to own a home.”

And there were cautionary words from some experts who warned that higher prices make it more difficult for first-time buyers to get onto the housing ladder.

John Goodall, of the buy-to-let specialist Landbay, said: “Although record low mortgage rates will be helping those who have already stumped up a deposit, escalating house prices will come as yet another blow to aspiring homeowners looking to get their foot on the housing ladder.

“It is essential that the government doesn’t lose focus on addressing the housing crisis and makes good on its promise to build the thousands of new, affordable homes that people desperately need.”

The ONS figures lag behind those by Halifax, which reported annual house price inflation at four per cent in the three months to September and Nationwide, which reported annual house price inflation slowing down to two per cent in September.