UK house prices have reached record highs in May, with an average property increasing by around £2,800 in the last month.
Homes in May were priced at an average of £375,000 in May, representing a 0.8% uptick compared to April, new data from Rightmove PLC (LSE:RMV) found.
May is historically a strong period for housing prices, with the month seeing 12 record highs over the last 22 years.
“Price growth is still led by the largest-homes, top-of-the-ladder sector, with prices in this sector up by an average of 1.3 per cent compared with last year,” Rightmove said.
“However, since the last price record set a year ago in May 2023, average prices are only 0.6 per cent higher overall, a reminder that the market remains very price-sensitive.”
In the capital, the cost of an average house lifted by 0.1% to £697,000, remaining the most expensive place to purchase a property in the UK.
Tim Bannister at Rightmove said: “Some predicted that property prices would suffer sharp falls and take a while to recover following the Bank of England increasing the Base Rate up to 5.25 per cent, where it has remained since August 2023.
“The market remains price-sensitive, and with prices reaching new records in the majority of regions and mortgage rates remaining elevated, affordability for many home-buyers is still stretched.”