Demand remains elevated as first-time buyers become more active in the market. Sellers remain reluctant to list homes for sale, maintaining upward pressure
on prices
Annual UK house price inflation +4.3%
House prices climbed by 0.3% in January, taking the annual rate of growth to 4.3%, matching the highest rate of growth since April 2017. Price growth at a country and regional level ranges from 2.8% in London to 5.5% in the North West of England and 5.6% in Wales (see map, page 7).
Meanwhile, Manchester and Liverpool are the cities registering the strongest price rises, with annual house price growth of 6.3% and 6.8% respectively.
Demand for housing still ahead of last year
Buyer demand has remained strong through the first six weeks of 2021. It is up 12.4% compared to the same point last year (as shown in the chart on page 1) – when demand rebounded after the General Election result in December 2019. The flow of new buyers comes despite the imminent ending of the stamp duty holiday.
Robust levels of demand signal the continuation of a trend that we have highlighted since the summer of last year. While stamp duty has prompted higher levels of activity, there is still a cohort of buyers and movers who are looking for a new home after a reassessment of how and where they are living after repeated lockdowns and the rise of working from home. The data points towards a ‘search for space’ among some buyers.
