The June data from Land Registry’s flagship House Price Index shows an annual price increase of 8.4 per cent.
This is the eighth month in a row in which the annual figure has been positive and takes the average property value in England and Wales to £166,072. The monthly change from May to June is an increase of 0.1 per cent.
House prices are now around the same levels as they were in the summer of 2006. All regions in England and Wales experienced increases in their average property values over the last 12 months. The region with the highest annual price change is London with an increase of 12.2 per cent. The region with the smallest annual price rise is the North East with a movement of 0.7 per cent.
Wales experienced the greatest monthly rise with a movement of 2.9 per cent. The North East region experienced the most significant monthly price fall with a movement of -1.3 per cent. The most up-to-date figures available show that during April 2010, the number of completed house sales in England and Wales rose by 26 per cent to 49,323 from 39,280 in April 2009.
NAEA Cheif Executive, Peter Bolton-King, comments:
“The latest Land Registry statistics show that the housing market is slowly recovering. This is to be welcomed, but many people are still excluded from owning a home because lending remains unfairly restricted.
“There are enormous regional differences in house prices and in the state of the housing market recovery generally. Buyers, especially first time buyers, are confused and should take advice from professional NAEA members on their local market.”
Simon Rubinsohn, RICS chief economist said:
“The data suggests house prices on completed sales in England and Wales edged up a further 0.1 per cent in June. As a result, house prices on this measure are just 9.5 per cent away from their previous high, recorded in November 2007.
“The strongest monthly gain in June was in Wales but London continues to post the highest year-on-year increase (12.2 per cent). The Welsh data is not only out of line with recent Land Registry figures (from the country) but also with the results of the RICS Housing Survey (which show a much more subdued picture) making us question the sustainability of this rise in prices.
“More generally, most RICS indicators suggest that prices across England and Wales could slip back a little during the second half of the year. London may be the exception to this.
“The more worrying element of the Land Registry data is the continuing weakness in transaction activity. While the latest numbers only refer to April, they show completed sales in England and Wales at less than 50,000.
“Moreover, subsequent figures on mortgage approvals suggest that this number is unlikely to pick-up anytime soon. With the average number of monthly transactions prior to onset of the credit crunch roughly double this figure, it is clear mobility has been impacted and many people who wish to take their first step on the property ladder or move home have been unable to do so.”
Source – myintroducer.com