UK house prices soar – report

Average UK house prices have surged by 15.5% over the year to July, up from 7.8% in the previous month, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) reported on Wednesday.

The report highlighted that it’s “the highest annual inflation rate seen since May 2003,” reflecting how prices in the same month last year were affected by the end of the stamp duty holiday.

The average UK house price was £292,000 in July 2022, which is £39,000 higher than this time last year. Data also indicated that the price increased by £6,000 between June and July this year, compared with a fall of £13,000 between the same months last year.

Average house prices grew over the year in England to £312,000 (16.4%), in Wales to £220,000 (17.6%), in Scotland to £193,000 (9.9%) and in Northern Ireland to £169,000 (9.6%), the ONS said.

“There will be some offsetting support to prices, however, from the recently-announced cap on energy prices, which will limit the squeeze on real incomes, the ongoing scarcity of supply, and the resilient labor market,” senior UK economist at Pantheon Gabriella Dickens told Sky News.

“All told, then, we think that house prices will drop by about 2% over the next six months and then will start to recover in 2023, particularly if the Bank of England holds back from increasing the bank rate as quickly as investors currently expect,” she said.

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