Average house prices were on track to increase by 5.9 per cent over the next three months to £308,396 in May, but fears over coronavirus may derail growth, according to forecasts by Reallymoving.

The predictions for prices in England and Wales are based on the property details entered by home movers who use the website to compare prices for conveyancing, removals and other services.

Buyers typically register for quotes twelve weeks before their purchase completes, which normally provides an accurate indicator of house price trends over the months ahead.

However, this means that the current set of data does not reflect the impact of coronavirus on house prices or home buyer sentiment. 

Before factoring in the effects of the outbreak, Reallymoving’s data suggests there will be a minor 0.7 per cent dip in March, based on deals agreed in December, but this was set to be wiped out by growth of 4.3 per cent in April and 2.3 per cent in May following a strong market performance in the New Year when agents reported a jump in sales.

Annual growth is currently forecast to reach 3.4 per cent in March, 6 per cent in April before making a huge jump to 9.9 per cent in May.

However, May’s figure is distorted by a particularly weak performance in the same month last year. 

Reallymoving chief executive Rob Houghton says: “Buyers returned to the market in their droves in the New Year and this activity has clearly translated through to higher house prices across the country between March and May, but now we are facing another potentially prolonged period of uncertainty due to the deepening Coronavirus crisis. 

“The current situation is unprecedented but we know from past events such as the global financial crisis in 2008 that when people were worried about their jobs and their pensions, they tend to withdraw from making big financial decisions and avoid taking on new debt. 

“It’s too early to say the extent to which the property market will be affected, and the Bank of England’s emergency 0.5 percentage point interest rate cut should help mitigate the impact, but consumer confidence is fragile and I expect we will see a proportion of deals collapsing and a short-term drop in prices by late spring or early summer.”