Halifax: House prices' see first quarterly fall since 2012

12th May 2017

In the three months to April house prices fell 0.2%, according to Halifax, with prices down 0.1% over the past month. The dip in Q1 marks the first quarterly fall since November 2012. However, for the year to April, prices rose by 3.8% - the same increase as that seen in March. The figures show that the average cost of a home now stands at £219,649 - £2,541 lower than the peak recorded in December 2016. Martin Ellis, Halifax’s housing economist, said prices have “stagnated” in the last quarter while demand “appears to have been curbed” by a “deterioration” in housing affordability caused by “a sustained period of rapid house price growth” through 2014 to 2016. The Halifax report includes a poll on market confidence which saw 58% of respondents say they expect the average property price to rise in the next year, while 14% expect prices to fall.

The Times (08/05/2017)