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- What is happening to house prices in the UK?
- Average UK property prices
- Latest house price changes across the UK
- How property prices are changing where you live
- London house prices
- Are house prices falling?
- UK house price forecasts 2025 and beyond
- Expert UK housing market predictions
- Is now a good time to buy a house?
- UK House Price FAQs
What is happening to house prices in the UK?
UK house prices have hit an all time high, after rising for the fourth month in a row. Halifax said the average house price in the UK reached £293,999 in October, beating the previous high of £293,507 recorded in June 2022.
Despite the new record, the pace of price rises has slowed. Typical property values were 3.9% higher in October than a year ago, compared with a 4.6% annual rise the month before.
Nationwide reported a similar slowdown a few days earlier. The lender said higher mortgage rates meant affordability is “relatively stretched”, which is dampening the property market in general.
The property portal Rightmove also recently reported that asking prices set by new home sellers increased by 0.3% in October, lower than the average rise of 1.3% usually seen during the month.
| Nationwide | Halifax | Rightmove | Land Registry | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Average house price | £265,738 | £293,999 | £371,958 | £292,924 |
| Monthly change | +0.1% | +0.2% | +0.3% | +1.5% |
| Annual change | +2.4% | +3.9% | +1.0% | +2.8% |
| Figures for | October 2024 | October 2024 | October 2024 | August 2024 |
| Methodology | Based on Nationwide mortgage transactions | Based on Lloyds Banking Group mortgage transactions | Based on asking prices of newly marketed properties | Based on official completed house sales data |
Average UK property prices
The average house price is £309,572 in England, £222,925 in Wales, and £199,971 in Scotland, according to Land Registry data for August 2024. In the second quarter of 2024, the average property price in Northern Ireland was £185,025.
On a regional basis, the highest average house prices in England in August 2024 were in London, at £531,000, and in the South East, at £385,000. Average property prices were lowest in the North East, at £166,000.
Latest house price changes across the UK
The direction and pace of house price changes differ across the UK. In August, average house prices in England increased by 1.6% compared with the previous month, while in Wales prices increased by 2.6%. In Scotland, prices rose by 1.2% month-on-month, according to the latest Land Registry data.
On an annual basis, average house prices are 2.3% higher in England and 3.5% higher in Wales compared with a year earlier. Property prices in Scotland are 5.4% higher year-on-year. In Northern Ireland, month
| UK | England | Scotland | Wales | Northern Ireland | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Average house price | £292,924 | £309,572 | £199,971 | £222,925 | £185,025 |
| One year earlier | £285,073 | £302,595 | £189,745 | £215,294 | £179,348 |
| Annual change | +2.8% | +2.3% | +5.4% | +3.5% | +6.4% |
| Monthly change | +1.5% | +1.6% | +1.2% | +2.6% | +3.6% |
Source: HM Land Registry. Figures for England, Scotland and Wales are for August 2024. Figures for Northern Ireland are for Q2 2024.
How property prices are changing where you live
Average house prices in August increased in all regions of England compared to the previous month, except in the South West, where prices fell by 0.3%. The largest monthly increase is in Yorkshire and the Humber, where prices increased by 2.7% compared with July.
Average property prices are higher than a year ago in every region of England. The largest annual rise is in the North West, at 4.6%, while the smallest increase is in the South West, where values are 0.8% higher than 12 months earlier.
London house prices
The average house price in London in August 2024 was £531,212. Property values in the capital are up 1.4% compared with a year earlier, and 2.2% higher month-on-month.
However, property prices can vary widely between different London boroughs. In August 2024, the highest house prices in London were in the borough of Kensington and Chelsea, where the average property costs £1.17 million. The lowest house prices in London were in Barking and Dagenham, at an average cost of £335,571.
Are house prices falling?
House prices in the UK are currently rising, but the pace of growth may be slowing. Nationwide reported that UK house prices rose by 0.1% on a monthly basis in October, compared with 0.6% in September. On an annual basis, growth eased to 2.4%, from 3.2%. A similar slowdown was also reported by Halifax shortly after.
It’s important to note that property prices, and the direction and pace of price movements, change all the time. However, there are signs that the underlying trend of steadily rising property prices that has generally been the norm in recent years may have resumed.
UK house price forecasts 2025 and beyond
It is generally predicted that property prices will continue to rise in 2025, and in the years after.
| 2025 | 2026 | 2027 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Knight Frank | +3.0% | +4.0% | +5.0% |
| Office for Budget Responsibility | +1.1% | +1.8% | +2.7% |
| Savills | +4.0% | +5.5% | +5.0% |
| Capital Economics | +5.0% | +4.0% | – |
Expert UK housing market predictions
Richard Donnell, Executive Director, Zoopla
“The housing market is adjusting to the step change in mortgage rates over the last two years. It is positive to see more sales activity supported by rising incomes and mortgage rates in the lower 4% range. Additionally, this reflects growing confidence amongst buyers and sellers. Our assumption remains that mortgage rates will remain close to current levels (4%-4.5%) over 2025. This means wage growth will have to do the hard work supporting affordability and buying power with house price growth likely to remain modest. The market remains on track for a modest 2% price increase in 2024, with sales of 1.1 million.”
Amanda Bryden, Head of Mortgages, Halifax
“Looking ahead, borrowing constraints remain a challenge for many buyers. Following the budget, markets expect the Bank of England to cut rates more slowly than previously anticipated, which could keep mortgage costs higher for longer. New policies like higher stamp duty for second home buyers and a return to previous thresholds for first-time buyers might also affect demand. While we expect house prices to keep growing, it will likely be at a modest pace for the rest of this year and into next.”
Tarrant Parsons, Head of Market Analytics at the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS)
“The latest [RICS] survey results once again convey a brighter picture for housing market activity, with the recent easing in mortgage interest rates continuing to support a recovery in buyer demand. Critical for the outlook, a further unwinding in monetary policy is anticipated over the months ahead, which should create a more favourable backdrop for the market moving forward. In keeping with this idea, forward-looking sentiment data from the survey points to sales volumes gaining impetus, both in the near-term and over the next twelve months.”
Tim Bannister, Director of Property Science at Rightmove
“With the ball in the buyer’s court and the pick of a big crop [of properties] to choose from, sellers need to be pricing competitively to find a buyer, particularly with affordability still very stretched. Some sellers appear to be acting on this caution, contributing to limited price growth and better buyer affordability. This is helping to keep the number of sales being agreed consistently and strongly ahead of the quieter market of this time last year. We’re not seeing activity slow down, but some estate agents report that some movers are now waiting for Budget clarity and anticipated cheaper mortgage rates later this year. However, others state that movers are largely just getting on with plans. Once we have more certainty about the contents of the Budget, hopefully followed by speedy second and third bank rate cuts, we could see another surge in market optimism like we had in the summer.”
» MORE: Where is the cheapest place to rent in the UK?
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Is now a good time to buy a house?
Financially, the best time to buy a house is when mortgage rates and house prices are both low. In reality, the chances of this happening, and being able to time a purchase right, are slim. So instead, it’s important to find a property and mortgage you can afford without overstretching.
While mortgage rates have dropped since the middle of last year, they remain significantly higher than through most of the 2010s and early 2020s. Simply put, mortgages aren’t as affordable as a few years ago.
If your funds are tight, waiting for rates to come down may be your only option. There are hopes the rate cuts seen through much of the year may resume in November, but this is far from certain. Forecasts also suggest that house prices will end the year higher than where they began it.
Ultimately, it’s impossible to predict with any certainty what will happen to house prices and the cost of mortgages.
Because of this, whether now is a good time to buy a property or not largely depends on your circumstances, priorities and outlook. Getting mortgage advice can help you figure out the numbers. But the ultimate decision to buy now or wait will rest with you.
» MORE: Check current mortgage rates
UK House Price FAQs
The average house price in the UK was £292,924 in August 2024, up from £285,073 a year earlier, according to the latest HM Land Registry UK House Price Index. This means UK property prices are 2.8% higher than a year ago, and 1.5% higher month-on-month.
Most house price forecasts predict property prices will rise in 2025. For example, Capital Economics forecasts a 5% increase in property values, while Savills anticipates growth of 4%.
The latest RICS survey described the outlook for the housing market as “broadly positive”, with sales and new listings of property both rising in September. Buyer demand was positive for the third month a row, while sentiment among surveyors over house price growth nationally turned positive for the first time in two years. Higher mortgage rates, cost of living concerns, and weakened market confidence had all combined to dampen the housing market last year. However, in recent months, with mortgage rates and inflation both falling, there have been definite signs of improvement in the market.
Home sellers are taking on average 61 days to find a buyer, according to the latest Rightmove data for September 2024. This compares with a shorter time of 59 days to secure a buyer a year earlier.
The average discount secured by home buyers on asking prices was £16,600 – or 3.2% – in June, according to Zoopla. This compares with the typical discount of £23,000, or 4.4%, that buyers were securing in October last year. The property website said discounts were bigger last year because higher mortgage rates meant there were fewer buyers around.
House prices in London are rising, according to the latest Land Registry data. In August, the average house price in London of £531,212 was 2.2% higher compared with the previous month, and 1.4% higher year-on-year.
There are several house price reports and indices published each month that provide insight into house price trends and the housing market in the UK. Four of the most respected indices are published by HM Land Registry, Rightmove, Halifax and Nationwide, each showing how property prices are changing from month to month and on an annual basis. However, as each index tends to be based on different data and may be calculated in different ways, they often show different average house prices and changes when compared with one another.
Land Registry sold house price data is usually considered one of the most accurate housing market barometers because it is based on completed property sales, and includes cash purchases, as well as properties bought using a mortgage. However, because it is collated in this way, the data tends to be around two months behind other indices.
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