London house prices fell at their fastest rate since the financial crisis in the third quarter, according to Halifax.
Homes in the capital saw their values sink 1.7 per cent year on year, their worst performance since autumn 2009. Meanwhile south east house prices dropped 1.3 per cent.
UK house prices grew at their slowest rate in six-and-a-half years in the third quarter of 2019, the bank’s house price index showed.
The value of British homes rose just 1.5 per cent year on year in the third quarter, a drop from 1.8 per cent in the previous three months. That is its worst quarterly increase since the start of 2013.
That left the average UK house price at £233,808, a drop from the second quarter average of £234,026.
Quarter to quarter, house prices rose 0.4 per cent in the three months to the end of September, versus a 0.4 per cent decline in the three months to the end of June.
Paul Smith, economics director at IHS Markit, which compiled the data, warned the UK housing market is still “fragile”.
He said Brexit uncertainty is stoking fears for buyers and sellers alike.
“Despite the low mortgage rate environment and rising earnings growth helping to ease affordability constraints, UK-wide house price inflation sank to a six-and-a-half year low,” Smith added.
“We suspect that political and economic uncertainty associated with Brexit continues to weigh on the market. This is especially the case in the south of England, where prices are falling and, in the case of London, at the fastest rate since the height of the financial crisis.”
Still, London house prices still remained above £480,000, almost £160,000 more expensive than prices in the south east, where buyers can expect to pay an average £323,055.
By Joe Curtis
Source: City AM