Because it is based on asking prices at the point properties are listed, Rightmove\u2019s House Price Index provides the most up-to-date view of the current market conditions of any of the indices. Halifax and Nationwide\u2019s figures, on the other hand, are based on completed sales, which typically lag Rightmove\u2019s by two to three months.<\/p>\n
As a result, they are providing the first real indications of how geopolitical tensions in the Middle East and the resulting upward pressure on inflation and borrowing costs are impacting the housing market.<\/p>\n
The data shows that, so far, the UK housing market is proving remarkably resilient. Average asking prices rose by 0.8% (+\u00a32,929) in April to \u00a3373,971, although that is a more modest increase than is typical for this time of year.<\/p>\n
Demand is also slightly softer than normal, with buyer enquiries running 7% below the same period last year. However, the number of sales agreed is just 3% behind April 2025, suggesting transactions are continuing even though fewer buyers are entering the market.<\/p>\n
Colleen Babcock, Property Expert at Rightmove, says: \u201cSome buyers will be feeling cautious due to cost of living and mortgage rate increases. However, the latest data shows that, at least for now, home-movers are largely showing their usual resilience with their housing needs trumping other events\u2026 the overall market currently remains resilient.\u201d<\/p>\n
Although affordability pressures are a key factor in the market at the moment, they are being offset to a certain extent by wage growth, which is running at around 3.9% annually, and by more flexible lending criteria, which together have increased buyers\u2019 borrowing capacity.<\/p>\n
At the same time, however, the number of new homes coming to market is at an eleven-year high for April, increasing competition among sellers and giving buyers greater choice. Alongside this, higher borrowing costs \u2014 driven by inflation concerns and rising energy costs\u2014 are constraining how far buyers\u2019 finances can stretch.<\/p>\n
Rightmove\u2019s data shows that top-of-the-ladder homes recorded price growth of 2.4% in April, compared with 0.2% for first-time buyers and 0.4% for second-steppers.<\/p>\n
This is a reflection of the impact higher borrowing costs are having in the different market segments, with those sectors where buyers are more mortgage-dependent seeing considerably lower price growth.<\/p>\n
According to Babcock: \u201cWith mortgage rates remaining elevated due to the war in Iran, it\u2019s not a surprise that price growth is proving strongest in parts of the market less exposed to higher borrowing costs\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n
Despite the housing market\u2019s resilience, it is not immune to global events, and with the situation in the Middle East continuing to evolve, the outlook for borrowing costs \u2014 and in turn housing market activity \u2014 remains highly uncertain.<\/p>\n
And those conditions have shifted once again, with oil prices falling sharply after Iran announced that the Strait of Hormuz would remain open to commercial shipping during a ceasefire period. Brent crude dropped below $90 a barrel from above $98 earlier in the day, having previously surged past $100 during the conflict.<\/p>\n
The Strait has now been closed once more, although any sustained easing in energy prices is likely to quickly feed through to inflation expectations, which could in turn reduce pressure on the Base Rate and mortgage costs.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Rightmove reports rising borrowing costs and inflation pressures are limiting growth, but activity levels suggest the housing market is adjusting to the conditions rather than contracting. Because it is based on asking prices at the point properties are listed, Rightmove\u2019s House Price Index provides the most up-to-date view of the current market conditions of any… Read more »<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4233,"featured_media":6107591,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[59,765,6],"tags":[736],"class_list":["post-6107587","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-trending-news","category-property-investment","category-uk-housing-market","tag-uk-housing-market"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.buyassociationgroup.com\/en-gb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6107587","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.buyassociationgroup.com\/en-gb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.buyassociationgroup.com\/en-gb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.buyassociationgroup.com\/en-gb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4233"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.buyassociationgroup.com\/en-gb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6107587"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.buyassociationgroup.com\/en-gb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6107587\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6107590,"href":"https:\/\/www.buyassociationgroup.com\/en-gb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6107587\/revisions\/6107590"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.buyassociationgroup.com\/en-gb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/6107591"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.buyassociationgroup.com\/en-gb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6107587"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.buyassociationgroup.com\/en-gb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6107587"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.buyassociationgroup.com\/en-gb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6107587"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}