UK house price growth slips to three-year low

Residential property price growth dropped to a three-year low in July 2016 as the UK’s decision to leave the EU continued to have an adverse impact on the market, a new poll of surveyors suggests.

The latest survey conducted by the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) revealed that home price increases slowed significantly in the three months to the end of July, along with new buyer inquiries, property sales and new instructions.

According to July’s housing market survey, just 5% more of those surveyed saw a rise rather than a fall in prices, while predictions for house price growth in the next three months remains negative across the country.

Despite the short-term slowdown, the outlook for the next 12 months is slightly more positive according to those polled, which acts as a rather good indicator of future house price changes, with 23% more people expecting prices to rise, compared to last month’s survey which put that figure at zero.

All areas of the UK are projected to see home price growth in the coming 12 months, with the exception of London and East Anglia. However, over the next five years, surveyors have forecast prices will increase by 4% per year in the capital, outstripping the national average of 3% over the same period.

Simon Rubinsohn, chief economist at RICS, said: “The housing market is currently balancing a raft of somewhat mixed economic news alongside the latest policy measures announced by the Bank of England, which have already begun to lower cost of mortgage finance.”