House prices for the typical home rise £2,046 in the first six months of the year equivalent to a good bottle of wine, says Zoopla.

According to research from Zoopla, property values rising £2,046 for the first six months of the year or £11 per day, just enough to buy a good bottle of wine.

There were significant variations across regions with West Midlands the best performing with house prices rising £6,695 for six months or £36.58 per day with the average value of £237,371 in July.

The average 5.8% annual rise for house prices in the West Midlands means first time buyers would require a higher deposit, larger mortgage or higher earnings to purchase their first home.

House prices in London are falling

In contrast, house prices in London are falling reducing -£13,035 for six months or down -£71.23 per day with the average value of £657,500 this month.

Scotland also experienced falls in property values lower by -£3,768 for the first six months or lower by -£20.59 per day with the average value of £191,174.

For buy-to-let landlords in regions with falling house prices means they need a smaller deposit or mortgage and rental yields after interest payments would increase.

The following table from Zoopla shows the total change and average change per day in property values from January to July 2019.

Region	July Prices	Change Per day
West Midlands	£237,371	£36.58
South East	£413,284	£35.32
North West	£202,177	£20.39
Wales	£193,910	£18.03
Yorkshire	£184,181	£12.37
East of England	£362,823	£11.56
East Midlands	£226,177	£9.97
North East	£193,663	£6.97
South West	£310,165	£4.55
Scotland	£191,174	-£20.59
London	£657,500	-£71.23

After West Midlands, the South East was the next best performing region with house prices rising £6,463 from January to July or an average of £35.32 per day.

Even though house prices in London reduced, the capital still maintains the highest average property value in the country of £657,500.

For home movers leaving areas with the highest rising property values to areas with lower growth, they may have extra equity for a deposit to buy a larger home or can reduce their mortgage.

Best performing post towns

There were strong performances for individual post towns with the biggest gains in Berkhamsted with house prices up £33,875 averaging £185.11 per day to a high of £717,231 in July.

Next town with strong price rise was Reigate up £33,723 for the year or £184.28 per day and average prices of £617,115 followed by Epping rising £32,657 or £178.45 per day and prices of £593,587.

The rise in house prices in these post towns allows the older equity release buyer to stay in their home while accessing the wealth in their property with a lifetime mortgage to repay an interest only mortgage or even pay for care at home.

Across London property values are lower on average although there are large local variations with higher house prices for Notting Hill and Holland Park rising by £141.46 a day.

Other local areas are down significantly more than the average for London with big losses recorded for Hampstead, Belsize Park and Swiss Cottage reducing by £179.28 a day and Leatherhead by £141.46 per day.

Rather than moving home when London house prices are falling, remortgage buyers at the end of your mortgage deal can wait and switch to a preferential rate to reduce your monthly repayment costs.

What are your next steps?

Speak to our LCM mortgage advisers if you are planning to move home, buying your first home, remortgaging your existing home to a new cost effective mortgage deal or are a buy-to-let investor.

For equity release buyers our London City Mortgage brokers can recommend lifetime mortgages allowing you to receive cash from your property to help your children start or expand a business or for home improvements and holidays of a lifetime.

Learn more by using the mortgage monthly cost calculators, equity release calculator and property value tracker chart. Start with a free mortgage quote or call us and we can take your details.