House price growth accelerated in September, official figures show

The average UK house price was £226,000 in September 2017, marking a 0.4 per cent increase on the previous month

House prices in London increased at the slowest annual pace since 2012, rising 1.2 per cent year-on-year in June (Reuters)

Annual house price growth accelerated in September, according to official figures.

Across the UK, annual house price growth stood at 5.4 per cent in September, up from 4.8 per cent in August, according to figures released jointly by the Office for National Statistics (ONS), HM Land Registry and other bodies.

The annual growth rate has remained broadly around 5 per cent during 2017, the report said.

The average UK house price was £226,000 in September 2017, marking a 0.4 per cent increase on the previous month.

In England, house prices increased by 5.7 per cent over the year to September 2017, with the average price at £244,000.

Within England, the North-west showed the highest annual growth, with prices increasing by 7.3 per cent in the year to September 2017 to reach £160,951 on average.

The lowest annual growth was in London, where prices increased by 2.5 per cent over the year to reach £483,568 typically.

Wales saw house prices increase by 5.3 per cent over the previous 12 months to reach £153,000 typically. In Scotland, the average price increased by 3.1 per cent over the year, reaching £145,000. The average price in Northern Ireland was £132,000, a yearly increase of 6 per cent.

Looking at UK local authorities, the area showing the largest annual growth in the year to September 2017 was Hinckley and Bosworth, where prices increased by 15.9 per cent to stand at £215,000.

The lowest annual growth was recorded in Halton, where prices fell by 5.2 per cent to stand at £127,000.

Richard Snook, a senior economist, PwC, said: “The trend that has been emerging over the summer and autumn is the rest of the UK outperforming London.”

He continued: “Our latest market projection, published in July, was for growth of between 3 per cent and 5 per cent in 2017 with 4 per cent as the central scenario.

“Growth for the year is now likely to be around the upper end of this range.”

Mr Snook said another notable trend is increasingly low volumes of house sales.

In July 2017 the number of property transactions completed in the UK decreased by 15.2 per cent when compared with July 2016.

Mr Snook said: “This does point to a lack of broader market momentum and may lead to a softening in price growth as we move into 2018.”

Howard Archer, chief economic adviser at EY Item Club, said: “Housing market activity is being pressurised by weakened consumer purchasing power and substantial consumer wariness over engaging in major transactions.”

PA