House Prices See Biggest Annual Fall In Over 10 years

UK house prices fell by 1.1% in the year to February, as higher mortgage rates and living costs made homes less affordable.

Aside from a small drop at the start of the pandemic, this was the first annual fall in property values since November 2012, according to Nationwide.

Prices slipped on a monthly basis too, falling by 0.5% from January.

The building society said it would be "hard for the market to regain much momentum in the near term".

"Economic headwinds look set to remain relatively strong, with the labour market widely expected to weaken as the economy shrinks in the quarters ahead," said its chief economist Robert Gardner.

He added that mortgage rates remained "well above" the lows seen in 2021.

The price of an average property is now £257,406, down from £258,297 in January and 3.7% lower than its peak in August 2022.

House prices have fallen on a monthly basis for six months in a row, according to Nationwide, as higher borrowing costs have squeezed buyers.

Read More