W. Midlands house prices rise by most in last year
THE West Midlands was the strongest performing region – with London the worst – in an assessment of house prices in 2017.
Prices ended the year 2.6 per cent higher nationally than when the year started, with London identified as the UK’s weakestperforming region for the first time since 2004, according to an index.
In the West Midlands, house prices were up 5.2 per cent annually, the highest increase.
Next best was the South West at 4.8 per cent.
Across the UK, the average price was £211,156 in December, marking a 0.6 per cent month-onmonth increase as well as the 2.6 per cent annual uplift, Nationwide Building Society said.
The annual rise was the slowest for any calendar year since 2012. It compares with a 4.5 per cent annual increase in December 2016.
For the first year since 2008, prices in northern England and the Midlands combined grew at a faster rate than in southern England, Nationwide said, with a 3.6 per cent year-on-year increase compared with 1.6 per cent.
In London, prices were down 0.5 per cent annually, taking the average to £470,922.
An increase of 3.3 per cent was seen in Wales, with 2.6 per cent in Scotland and two per cent in Northern Ireland.
Robert Gardner, Nationwide’s chief economist, said 2017 “saw the beginnings of a shift”, as rates of price growth in the South moderated towards those in the rest of the country. “London saw a particularly marked slowdown, with prices falling in annual terms for the first time in eight years, albeit by a modest 0.5 per cent,” he said.
Mr Gardner said a 20 per cent deposit in London now typically equates to more than £80,000, based on the average first-time buyer price. This is around £30,000 higher than a decade ago.
In other regions, such as the Midlands and northern England, deposit requirements are similar to 2007, he said.
Nationwide calculated that would-be buyers face spending around eight years saving for a deposit, rising to nine years in the South East and nearly ten years in London.