Property experts have been anticipating a slowdown in the market this year, but as house prices continue to rise, there seems to be no signs of this. Indeed, mortgage lending is also increasing, keeping property values high.
According to the latest House Price Index from Halifax, there was a 13 per cent growth between June 2021 and June 2022.
While the house price in the UK was £294,845 last month, the same residence was £34,000 cheaper in June 2021 at £260,973.
In addition to this, properties have risen in value by 1.8 per cent from May to June 2022, and by 3.8 per cent over the quarter.
Russell Galley, managing director of Halifax, noted that while lots of people have been affected by the cost-of-living crisis, this has not impacted property values yet as they tend to be less active in the market.
“In contrast, higher earners are likely to be able to use extra funds saved during the pandemic, with latest industry data showing that mortgage lending has increased by the highest amount since last September,” Mr Galley stated.
Bank of England statistics for the first quarter of 2022 showed that the value of residential mortgages had risen by 4.4 per cent year-on-year. It also revealed the value of new home loan commitments had grown by 6.7 per cent from the preceding quarter and 6.6 per cent from the year before.
Indeed, as much as £1,630.5 billion was lent for residential mortgages during the first three months of 2022, despite concerns about house prices becoming unaffordable.