There was some brighter news for the UK housing market today as property website, Rightmove, said house prices rose 0.9% in January after several months of falls.
Despite rising mortgage rates and a weak economic backdrop, the firm's latest survey showed the number of prospective buyers contacting agents increased by 55% compared to the two weeks before Christmas.
The increase is the biggest New Year bounce since 2016 although overall enquiries were down by over a third (36%) compared to the same time last year.
In the year to January, house prices increased by 6.3% with the average asking price for a home in the UK now £362,438, the survey noted.
In the survey, Tim Bannister, Rightmove's director of property science, said: "The seasonal increase in new seller asking prices this January from December is particularly encouraging for movers who are looking for the reassurance of familiar trends and a calmer, more measured market after the rapidly changing and at times chaotic economic climate of the final few months of last year.”
There was also good news for homeowners as data from Moneyfacts showed a fall in mortgage rates.
The average two-year fixed rate is now 5.63%, down from 5.79% on 1 January, and continuing declines from the highs of over 6% in the wake of Kwasi Kwarteng’s infamous mini-budget.