Property Market Fact File – July 2010

Bank Lending Rate

As widely predicted, the Bank of England Monetary Committee confirmed that the Bank Base Rate is to remain at 0.5% for a further month.  It has been at this level since 05th March, 2009.

Mortgage Lending by the Major UK Lenders

During May, net mortgage lending by all UK-resident mortgage lenders increased, whereas gross mortgage approvals declined slightly in June according to data from the major UK lenders. A small number of lenders reported an increase in the amount of new secured credit made available to households, though a decline in the availability of credit is expected in the next quarter. Demand for secured credit for house purchase was reported to have weakened. To read the article, click here.

Source: Bank of England

Land Registry Average Property Prices in England and Wales

The Average Price of a property in England and Wales is now £165,314 as at the end of May, 2010.

Percentage Changes of Property Prices in England and Wales

The Monthly change between May and June in England and Wales was -0.2%.

The Annual change between May and June in England and Wales was 8.2%.

Source: Land Registry

RICS survey overview.

The RICS Housing Market Survey for June shows that buyer interest fell for the first time since the beginning of this year, while property coming onto the market increased at the fastest pace since May. The scrapping of HIPs in May  is probably one of the main reasons for the sharp increase in instructions.

Source: Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors

Uncertainty in the Housing Market in June

The National Association of Estate Agents (NAEA) have reported that although the number of houses on their books fell slightly in June (from 62 in May to 59 on average per branch), the number of house hunters rose from 265 in May to 279 in June, (average figures per branch).
To read more click here.

New Mortgages granted

Gross mortgage lending in July totalled an estimated £13.1 billion in June, a 15% increase from £11.4 billion in May and up 7% from £12.2 billion in June 2009, according to new data from the Council of Mortgage Lenders.  To read the article, click here.

Source: Council of Mortgage Lenders

Regional trends in House prices.

Largest increase in July is in the West MIdlands, where the average price is up by 2.8% to £194,337. which is 2.8% higher than July 2009. (This area saw the largest decrease last month.)

Largest decrease in July is in East Anglia, where the average price is down by 2.3% in July to £216,849, which is 1.4% lower than in July 2009. To read the whole article, click here.

Source: Rightmove

Halifax House Price Index figures.

The average price of a house is now £167,750. House prices in May were 0.4% lower than in April. Despite this decrease for the second month in a row, house prices are still 6.9% higher than this time last year, measured by the average for the latest quarter against the same period a year earlier.

Source: Halifax/Lloyds TSB

Nationwide House Price Index figures

The latest monthly survey from the Nationwide shows that prices fell by 0.5% this month, taking the annual rate of house price inflation down from 8.7% to 6.6%.

The price of the average home is now £169,347, almost the same as it was in July 2008.
Source: Nationwide