National statistics

UK House Price Index summary: December 2018

Published 13 February 2019

1. Headline statistics for December 2018

the average price of a property in the UK was

£230,776

the annual price change for a property in the UK was

2.5%

the monthly price change for a property in the UK was

0.2%

the monthly index figure (January 2015 = 100) for the UK was

121.0

Estimates for the most recent months are provisional and are likely to be updated as more data is incorporated into the index. Read Revisions to the UK HPI data.

Next publication of UK HPI

The January 2019 UK HPI will be published at 9.30am on Wednesday 20 March 2019. See the calendar of release dates.

2. Economic statement

UK house prices grew by 2.5% in the year to December 2018, down from 2.7% in the year to November 2018. This is the lowest annual growth for the UK since July 2013, when house prices increased by 2.3%.

House price growth was strongest in Northern Ireland where prices increased by 5.5% over the year to Quarter 4 (Oct to Dec) 2018. This was followed by Wales and the West Midlands region, both increasing by 5.2% in the year to December 2018. The lowest annual growth was in the North East, where prices fell by 1.0% over the year to December 2018, down from an increase of 1.7% in November 2018. This was followed by London where prices fell 0.6% over the year. London house prices have been falling over the year each month since July 2018.

The Bank of England’s Agents’ summary of business conditions for 2018 Q4 reported that along with low supply of houses, demand was also falling. Housing activity in southern England was muted due to uncertainty, with transactions postponed until after the EU withdrawal. The demand for new build houses remained stronger outside London, in part due to housebuilders offering more incentive to finalise sales.

The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors’ (RICS) UK Residential Market Survey for December 2018 reported that new buyer enquiries fell for the fifth month in a row. This fall in demand was accompanied by a lack of fresh stock coming into the market as the survey’s indicator on new instructions remained in negative territory for the sixth report in a row.

The UK Property Transactions Statistics for December 2018 showed that on a seasonally adjusted basis, the number of transactions on residential properties with a value of £40,000 or greater was 102,330. This is 3.6% higher than a year ago. Between November 2018 and December 2018, transactions fell by 0.1%.

The Bank of England’s Money and Credit latest release showed that mortgage approvals for house purchases (an indicator of future lending) were around 63,800 in December, unchanged from November, but slightly below their 2018 average of around 65,200.

3. Price changes

3.1 Annual price change

Annual price change for UK by country over the past 5 years

Annual price change for UK by country over the past 5 years

Average house prices in the UK increased by 2.5% in the year to December 2018 (down from 2.7% in November 2018).

At the country level, the largest annual price growth was recorded in Northern Ireland, increasing by 5.5% over the year to quarter 4 (Oct to Dec) 2018.

The average price in Wales increased by 5.2% over the year to December 2018.

Scotland saw house prices increase by 2.4% over the last 12 months

In England, the average price increased by 2.3% over the year.

3.2 Average price by country and government office region

Price, monthly change and annual change by country and government office region

Country and government office region Price Monthly change Annual change
England £247,886 0.3% 2.3%
Northern Ireland (Quarter 4 - 2018) £136,669 1.3% 5.5%
Scotland £148,711 -0.9% 2.4%
Wales £161,845 0.8% 5.2%
East Midlands £192,748 -0.2% 4.2%
East of England £289,602 -1.1% 0.2%
London £473,822 0.1% -0.6%
North East £128,756 -0.4% -1.0%
North West £164,352 0.4% 3.5%
South East £324,729 0.1% 1.2%
South West £256,427 -0.3% 2.9%
West Midlands £200,388 2.0% 5.2%
Yorkshire and The Humber £165,119 2.0% 4.2%

Price changes by country and government office region

Price changes by country and government office region

On a non-seasonally adjusted basis, average house prices in the UK increased by 0.2% between November 2018 and December 2018, compared with an increase of 0.4% in average prices during the same period a year earlier (November 2017 and December 2017). On a seasonally adjusted basis, average house prices in the UK increased by 0.2% between November 2018 and December 2018.

Note that the Northern Ireland figure represents a three-month change and is not comparable with the other regions and countries.

3.3 Average price by property type

Average monthly price by property type

Property type December 2018 December 2017 Difference
Detached £349,871 £338,959 3.2%
Semi-detached £219,116 £211,742 3.5%
Terraced £187,198 £182,366 2.7%
Flat or maisonette £203,578 £203,168 0.2%
All £230,776 £225,164 2.5%

4. Sales volumes

The amount of time between the sale of a property and the registration of this information varies. It typically ranges between 2 weeks and 2 months but can be longer. Volume figures for the most recent two months are not yet at a reliable level for reporting, so they are not included in the report. Published transactions for recent months will increase as later registered transactions are incorporated into the index.

Sales volume data is also available by property status (new build and existing property) and funding status (cash and mortgage) in our downloadable data tables. Transactions involving the creation of a new register, such as new builds, are more complex and require more time to process. Read Revisions to the UK HPI data for more information.

4.1 Sales volumes

Number of sales volumes by country

Country October 2018 October 2017
England 66,599 77,047
Northern Ireland (Quarter 4 - 2018) 5,736 6,784
Scotland 9,003 9,047
Wales 3,911 4,471

Note: The ‘Difference’ column has been removed from this table as the latest month’s data are not yet complete.

The estimate for October 2018 is calculated based on around 85% of the final registered transactions. The number of property transactions for October 2018 will increase as more transactions are incorporated into the index.

Comparing the provisional volume estimate for October 2017 to the provisional estimate for October 2018, volume transactions increased by 4.7% in England, 1.9% in Scotland, 2.8% in Wales and 4.3% in Northern Ireland.

UK Property Transaction Statistics published by HM Revenue & Customs (which differ in coverage but are more complete for this period) report that on a non-seasonally adjusted basis, volume transactions increased by 1.0% in England, decreased by 10.0% in Scotland and increased by 0.6% in Wales in the year to October 2018.

4.2 Sales volumes for the UK over the past 5 years

Sales volumes for 2014 to 2018 by country: October

Sales volumes for 2014 to 2018 by country: October

The estimate for October 2018 is calculated based on around 85% of the final registered transactions. The number of property transactions for October 2018 will increase as more transactions are incorporated into the index. See our Revisions Policy for more information.

Comparing the provisional volume estimate for October 2017 to the provisional estimate for October 2018, volume transactions increased by 4.5%.

UK Property Transaction Statistics published by HM Revenue & Customs (which differ in coverage but are more complete for this period) report that on a non-seasonally adjusted basis, UK volume transactions increased by 0.1% in the year to October 2018.

5. Property status for UK

Transactions involving the creation of a new register, such as new builds, are more complex and need more time to process. This means they can take longer to appear in the land registers. The volume of new build transactions for the most recent 2 months are not at a reliable level for reporting the breakdown between new build and existing resold property, so they are not included in the report.

New build and existing resold property

Property status Average price October 2018 Monthly change Annual change
New build £296,460 2.3% 7.2%
Existing resold property £227,181 -0.4% 2.7%

Note: since October 2017 release, amendments have been made to our estimation model when calculating our provisional estimate. Find out further information and the impact of this change in methods used to produce the UK HPI.

6. Buyer status for Great Britain

First time buyer and former owner occupier

For Great Britain only, Northern Ireland data is not available for buyer status.

Type of buyer Average price December 2018 Monthly change Annual change
First time buyer £194,237 0.2% 2.0%
Former owner occupier £268,067 0.1% 2.8%

7. Funding status for Great Britain

Cash and mortgage

For Great Britain only, Northern Ireland data is not available for funding status.

Funding status Average price December 2018 Monthly change Annual change
Cash £220,271 0.2% 2.4%
Mortgage £240,425 0.2% 2.4%

8. Access the data

Download the data as CSV files or access it with our UK HPI tool.

Data revisions

View any revisions to previously published data in the data downloads or find out more about revisions in our guidance About the UK HPI.

9. About the UK House Price Index

The UK House Price Index (UK HPI) is calculated by the Office for National Statistics and Land & Property Services Northern Ireland. Find out about the methodology used to create the UK HPI.

Data for the UK House Price Index is provided by HM Land Registry, Registers of Scotland, The Land & Property Services/Northern Ireland Statistics & Research Agency and the Valuation Office Agency.

Find out more about the UK House Price Index.

10. Contact

Eileen Morrison, Data Services Team Leader, HM Land Registry

Email eileen.morrison@landregistry.gov.uk

Telephone 0300 006 5288

Aimee North, Head of Housing Market Indices, Office for National Statistics

Email aimee.north@ons.gov.uk

Telephone 01633 456400

Ciara Cunningham, Statistician for the Northern Ireland HPI

Email ciara.cunningham@finance-ni.gov.uk

Telephone 028 90 336035

Anne MacDonald, Land & Property Data Team, Registers of Scotland

Email Anne.MacDonald@ros.gov.uk

Telephone 0131 378 4991