£792,000 £1,137,186 -8.2%
£634 £41.3bn 15,995
Source: Dataloft by PriceHubble, Bank of England, HMRC, ONS
HOLDING STEADY
The housing market is holding steady, with stable mortgage rates and consistent activity levels. Demand remains supported, though uncertainty around the upcoming Autumn Budget is influencing confidence, especially at the top end of the market.
RATES STEADY
The Bank of England kept interest rates on hold at its September meeting, signalling a cautious approach as inflationary pressures persist. CPI inflation rose by 3.8% in the year to August 2025, unchanged from July¹. Mortgage rates have remained steady since the decision, with average five-year fixed deals currently between 4.1% (for those with 75% LTV) and 4.9% (for those on higher LTVs). This stability is supporting demand and giving borrowers greater confidence to plan ahead. Borrowing costs may edge down further if Bank Rate is reduced in the coming quarters, providing some additional support to activity (HM Treasury consensus forecasts suggest forecasters are roughly split in half between those expecting one further base rate cut this year and those not).
MORTGAGE APPROVALS RESILIENT
Mortgage approvals, a key indicator of future activity, have remained robust despite wider political and economic uncertainty. In August, there were 64,680 approvals, just 0.7% lower than in July, a modest dip for what is typically a quieter month in the housing calendar². Volumes have shifted by fewer than 1,000 over the past three months and are broadly in line with levels seen six months ago, suggesting borrowers have largely adjusted to the current rate environment.
UNCERTAINTY WEIGHS
Transaction volumes also point to relative stability, with 93,630 recorded in August — a 2% rise year-on-year, though a slight monthly dip of 2% following three consecutive
months of growth³. More timely indicators, however, suggest that uncertainty around the Autumn Budget is beginning to weigh on the market, particularly at the higher end. Over the past five weeks, demand for homes priced above £500,000 has slipped by 4%, accompanied by a 7% reduction in new listings 4 . The slowdown is even more evident at the top end of the market, where properties valued over £1 million have seen buyer interest fall 11% year-on-year and new listings decline by 9%. The latest RICS survey points to broadly flat sales expectations over the next three months, with a net balance reading of -2%5 . This year has seen a moderation in the trend from higher sales expectations in 2024 as the market recovered.
PRICES STEADY
Annual house price growth remained steady at 2.2% in September, close to 2.1% in August6 . By property type, semi-detached homes have seen the strongest gains over the past year, with average prices up 3.4%, while detached and terraced properties recorded increases of 2.5% and 2.4% respectively. Flats, by contrast, slipped 0.3% year-onyear and continue to show weaker long-term growth, rising just 20% over the past decade, less than half the increase in terraced houses.
In the prime markets of England and Wales, the average price of a property is £1,137,186, down 8.2% compared to the same time last year. Scotland and the North West recorded the strongest growth at 2.5% and 0.8% respectively.
¹ONS, ²Bank of England, ³HMRC, 4 Zoopla, 5 RICS, 6 Nationwide
£553,000
£778,805 +2.5%
£367
£536,000
£722,786 +0.8%
£375
£581,000
£763,386 +0.4%
£383
£477,000
£612,661 -3.8%
£331
£726,000
£969,423 -6.5%
£472
£911,000
£1,272,097 -7.3%
£561
£422,000
£556,252 +0%
£298
£511,000
£674,946 -1.3%
£348
£530,000
£688,445 -1.6%
£333
£800,000
£1,066,928 -3.6%
£522
£1,470,000
£2,328,796 -16.5%
£1,166
Source: Dataloft by PriceHubble, Land Registry.
Source: Dataloft by PriceHubble, Land Registry.
£282,275
£792,000
£1,137,186
£235,979
£729,000
£1,081,025
Source: Dataloft by PriceHubble, Land Registry.
£276,238
£654,000
£890,926
£432,507
£1,010,000
£1,464,490
£227,676
£672,000
£1,010,751
£292,999 £800,000 £1,135,934
Source: Dataloft by PriceHubble, Land Registry.
Source: Dataloft by PriceHubble, Land Registry.
Source: Dataloft by PriceHubble, Rightmove.