UK House Price Index: April 2021

The monthly house price index for April 2021 was published by ONS on 16 June 2021, and here are the main points: 

·         The UK average house prices increased by 8.9% over the year to April ‘21, although there are down from 9.9% recorded in March ‘21. April 2021 saw UK house price growth slow for the first time since July ’20.

·         The average UK house price was £251,000 in April 2021 which is £20,000 higher than in April 2020.

·         In England, the average house price increased over the year to £268,000 (8.9%)

The latter half of 2020 saw the UK's average house price growth accelerating. This trend continued into the beginning of 2021 but has slowed to 8.9% in April 2021. The tax changes of 8 July 2020 accelerated the house price growth. The higher house prices in March ’21 are contributed to the rush to complete transactions before the original tax (Stamp Duty Holiday) suspension deadline.

The monthly property transactions statistics published by HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) show that the seasonally adjusted number of transactions in March 2021 were estimated to be 183,170, the highest on record, but in April 2021 they fell to 117,860 - a fall of 36%.

HMRC reports that on a non-seasonally adjusted basis, volume transactions in England increased by 50.0%  in the year to February 2021. Across England, semi-detached houses showed the biggest increase out of all property types, growing by 10.3% in the year to April 2021 to £256,000. The lowest annual change was in flats and maisonettes which increased by 4.7% in the year to April 2021 to £230,000.

·         London

In April 2021, the most expensive borough to purchase a property was Kensington and Chelsea, where the average cost was £1.1 million. In contrast, the cheapest borough to purchase a property was Barking and Dagenham, where the average cost was £312,000.

For the fifth consecutive month, London continues to be the region with the lowest annual growth: (3.3%), down from 4% in March ’21.

London’s average house price in April ’21 is at  £492,000.

For the full UK House Price Index report for April 2021 CLICK HERE 

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