Despite the property market slowing down this year house prices have unexpectedly rebounded including expensive London.
Data from the Office of National Statistics (ONS) shows house prices in England rise by 5.7% for the year to April up from 4.4% a month ago.
Average property values in the UK are higher by £4,246 rising from £215,848 in March to £220,094 for April and London is up by £11,037 from £471,742 in March to £482,779 in April.
This will not be welcomed by first time buyers as they would require a larger deposit or higher earnings to buy or home movers as they need a larger mortgage where the gap with current property and the next increases.
For home movers wanting to trade up when prices are rising, they may find their next property is more expensive which means they need a larger deposit or mortgage.
Strong recovery in property values
Of the thirteen regions in the country, last month eleven experienced a decrease whereas in April twelve regions have increased month-on-month and only Northern Ireland decreasing by -0.8%.
Average prices and annual change for the UK to April 2017 from the ONS are shown below.
| Area | Annual changes | Property values |
|---|---|---|
| London | 4.7% | £482,779 |
| South East | 6.8% | £315,334 |
| East of England | 8.1% | £280,690 |
| South West | 6.8% | £243,215 |
| England | 5.7% | £236,519 |
| West Midlands | 6.0% | £180,690 |
| East Midlands | 6.5% | £176,213 |
| Yorks and the Humber | 4.9% | £155,357 |
| North West | 4.1% | £152,765 |
| Wales | 4.2% | £147,921 |
| Scoltand | 6.8% | £145,735 |
| Northern Ireland | 4.3% | £124,007 |
| North East | 0.6% | £123,234 |
Over a month, Yorks and the Humber has rebound the most from -0.6% to 3.9% and Scotland has the largest increase of 5.4% in April compared to a fall of -1.0% the previous month.
Year-on-year the largest house price growth was in the East of England up 8.1% for the year, the slowest is the North East with 0.6% and London is 4.7% higher to April compared to 1.5% in March.
For buy-to-let landlords with existing properties the rise in house prices creates more equity which they can benefit from if they sell in the future.
For older homeowners the continued rise in house prices has helped them to accumulated wealth in their properties and the equity release mortgage buyer can access this to maintain their lifestyle, holidays or home improvement.
London house prices slowing
The month of April is the first time in eleven months that the rate of price growth in London has increased.
Average prices and annual change in London for April 2017 from the ONS for the top ten boroughs are shown below.
| London borough | House prices |
Annual changes |
|---|---|---|
| Haringey | £558,003 | 9.0% |
| Enfield | £407,921 | 7.9% |
| Newham | £364,137 | 7.9% |
| City of Westminster | £1,040,376 | 7.7% |
| Havering | £358,251 | 7.4% |
| Barnet | £555,664 | 7.4% |
| Bexley | £334,191 | 7.2% |
| Hounslow | £409,591 | 6.9% |
| Barking and Dagenham | £285,085 | 6.9% |
| Hammersmith and Fulham | £819,677 | 5.3% |
The year-on-year house price growth for April is lower than the previous month for the top ten boroughs and may reflect anomalies from April 2016 as figures were depressed just after changes to stamp duty land tax.
Only three boroughs experienced falling property values over the year with Camden lower by -2.9%, Wandsworth down -2.2%, City of London lower by -0.7% and Islington down -0.5%.
Compared to last year, City of Westminster has seen the average price of homes rise £74,007, Haringey higher by £46,081, Hammersmith and Fulham rising £41,397 and Barnet up by £38,256.
One advantage of rising house prices for homeowners is remortgage buyers can now release capital for home improvements.
What are your next steps?
Talk to our London City Mortgage advisers if you are an older homeowner releasing equity from your property, we can recommend the lifetime mortgage to access wealth for home or garden improvements and holidays.
Start with a free mortgage quote or call us and we can take your details. Learn more by using the equity release calculator, property value tracker chart and mortgage costs calculator.
At LCM our mortgage brokers can provide advice if you are a first time buyer, moving home, want to remortgage your existing home to a new cost effective mortgage deal or are a buy-to-let investor.
Use your dashboard to access online mortgage quotes, money off vouchers and start your mortgage application online 24/7 on desktop, tablet or smartphone.
