UK house prices fell again in January, down 2.9% according to the latest monthly figures from Halifax.
Halifax, which is the nation’s largest mortgage lender, said this marked the second time since 2017 that the UK house prices fell at the start of the year.
The bank’s house price index figures revealed that the average house price fell to £223,691 following a 2.5% rise in December.
Ultimately, this marked the largest monthly fall since last April, when prices dipped 3.1%.
“This could either be viewed as a story of resilience, as prices have held up well in the face of significant economic uncertainty, or as a continuation of the slow growth we have witnessed over recent years,” said Russell Galley, Halifax managing director.
“There is no doubt that the next year will be important for the housing market with much of the immediate focus on what impact Brexit may have. However, more fundamentally it is key underlying factors of supply and demand that will ultimately shape the market.”
The figures follow similar downbeat numbers from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) in January.
Whilst the ONS said that UK house price growth rose to 2.8% in November, stagnation in the London property market dragged down numbers.
Specifically, London house prices fell 1.2 per cent month-on-month during the month, with the capital particularly affected by economic uncertainty and weak demand.
It is thought that many buyers have been deterred by ongoing Brexit-related uncertainty, stamp duty charges as well as expensive prices.
