House prices continued to fall in September and the downward pressure could last into 2024, Halifax warned.
The lender said the average property price fell by 0.4% last month, a smaller fall than in August when it shrank by 1.8%, extending a fall in prices, month-on-month, which began in April.
On an annual basis, prices fell by 4.7%, an acceleration on August’s 4.5% drop, and the biggest annual fall since August 2009 (when they fell 5.5%).
The average home now costs £278,601, a drop of around £1,200 since last month.
Kim Kinnaird, director, Halifax Mortgages, pointed out economists now predict interest rates will remain “higher for longer, with any significant cuts appearing unlikely until inflation gets closer to the Bank of England’s 2% target”.
She thinks these factors “are likely to keep mortgage rates elevated in comparison to recent years, constraining buyer demand and putting downward pressure on house prices into next year”.