Housing market shows signs of cooling

The housing market is showing signs of cooling, according to Halifax, as households face a squeeze on their finances. The mortgage lender said that while house prices continued to climb in May, with prices up 10.5% in 12 months, this was slowest rate of growth since the start of the year. The rise meant the average price of a house hit another record of £289,099. Halifax said that house prices have now climbed for eleven consecutive months. "Despite the very real cost of living pressures some people are experiencing, the imbalance between supply and demand for properties remains the primary reason driving the continued climb in house prices," said Russell Galley, managing director at Halifax. "However, the housing market has begun to show signs of cooling. Mortgage activity has started to come down and, coupled with the inflationary pressures currently exerted on household budgets, it's likely activity will start to slow," he added.

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