ONS Private Rent and House Prices response comment

17 April 2024

Richard Harrison, Head of Mortgages, Atom bank comments:

“The decrease in house prices reported today continues the trend of successive drops since the middle of last year, but despite this there are signs of rising confidence levels among buyers.

“We have already seen improved levels of activity in the property market of late following a period of relative stability. Data from Rightmove for example found that the number of sales in March was up by 13% on a year ago, while there has been an 8% growth in buyer demand as purchasers push ahead with moves they may have put on hold at the end of 2023, while house price indices from Nationwide and Halifax have shown prices on the rise.

“The latest inflation data, also out today, shows that the consumer prices index (CPI) measurement has dropped from 3.4% to 3.2% highlighting the steady progress in curbing inflation which should lay the foundations for reductions in Base Rate. With talk of a Base Rate cut as early as June, and the prospect of lower mortgage rates on offer, competition for properties is only likely to increase from this point onwards. As a result, would-be buyers need to be able to move quickly in order to secure the finance they need to fund the purchase, putting greater emphasis on lenders to turn around decisions at speed.”