London leads UK-wide house price slowdown
More evidence has emerged that suggests London house price growth is set to slow sharply while the national market moderates.
Of the UK’s 20 largest cities, 14 are now registering house price inflation below the national average for the UK, according to data released today by property market analysts Hometrack.
Over the past 12 months, London has seen the biggest gain – 17.3 per cent. However, another set of data released today suggests the London market is slowing after a year of boom. In London the proportion of households reporting that the value of their property rose in November was 62.7 per cent, down from 73.3 per cent last month, according to estate agents Knight Frank and financial information firm Markit.
“The latest figures indicate the sharpest month-on-month slowdown for just over three years, led by a decisive shift in momentum across London,” said Tim Moore, senior economist at Markit.
A house price sentiment index produced by Markit continued to imply growth was slowing.
The index decreased to 58.4 in November from 60.7 in October. Any figure above 50 signifies growth, while 50 equals no growth.
Figures from the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors have shown a sharp drop in buyer enquiries since earlier this year, and the steepness of the drop has been even more pronounced in London.
“Despite the economic uncertainty, the slowdown in the UK housing market will be welcome news for policy makers who want to avoid a debt- fuelled acceleration in house prices supported by record low mortgage rates. We expect the rate of house price growth to slow further in the run up to the year end,” said Richard Donnell, research director at Hometrack.