UK house prices edged up last month after falling in March, according to the latest Halifax house price index, which inched 0.1% higher in April.
Year-over-year, the index was up 1.1%, with the average house in the UK now costing £288,949, representing a £168 gain from a month ago.
A North/South divide has seen prices climbing in the former and dropping steadily towards the Channel.
While house prices have stabilised, with the index staying relatively flat over the first four months of 2024, Sarah Coles, head of personal finance at Hargreaves Lansdown, said “look a little closer at the annual figures and the market is wonky”.
Coles highlighted the north/south divide, with prices climbing in the former and dropping steadily in the south.
“This is a function of the fact that mortgage rates remain so stubbornly high,” said Coles.
“In the south, prices tend to be higher – the priciest are in London where the average home costs £539,336. It means mortgages are bigger, and so higher rates hit harder.
“Buyers are having to wait, and hope that rates fall, in order to afford the kind of property they really want to live in – or lower their ambitions and buy somewhere they can bear to live with instead.
“As a result, demand is down, and property prices are level or falling.”
Housebuilders were up following the HPI print, with Persimmon PLC (LSE:PSN) adding 2.1% and Barratt Developments PLC (LSE:BDEV) adding 2.3%.