UK annual house price growth halved to 0.8% in September, from 1.6% in August, Nationwide’s latest house price index reveals.
The average UK house price in September stood at £274,251, down by 0.2% from £275,465 in August.
Data also found that Northern Ireland remained best performing region, with prices up 5.9% year on year in Q3 2026.
Meanwhile, East Anglia weakest performing region, with annual decline of 0.7%.
Terraced properties were the strongest performing property type, with a 1.8% rise, whilst flats remained weakest with prices essentially unchanged compared with a year ago.
Commenting on the figures, MT Finance founding director Tomer Aboody says: “Nationwide’s data points to a housing market which continues to soften.”
“With the prospect of more taxation on the way in the budget, understandably buyers and sellers are reluctant to make a move unless it is essential.”
“We already know about the While other political parties have proposed cutting stamp duty, and some have even mooted the prospect of getting rid of it altogether, will the government respond with something similar to get the property market moving? It would be a step in the right direction and give the economy a real boost this autumn.”
AJ Bell head of personal finance Sarah Coles adds: “The traditional autumn house price bounce fell flat in September, with prices falling during the month.”
“This was so unusual for the time of the year that it meant the annual price rise actually halved. Prices are now growing at their slowest pace since December last year, and are significantly lagging inflation. It means property is losing value once inflation is taken into account.”
“It’s easy to see why. Mortgage rates have been climbing since early August, forcing buyers to rethink their plans. They kept rising relentlessly through September too, so by the end of the month, average five-year fixed rates reached a three-year peak according to Moneyfacts.”
“This has come despite the fact the Bank of England base rate has remained on hold. It’s due to the ongoing conflict in the Middle East. The fact there’s no end in sight means oil prices have ramped up. This has fuelled fears that inflation will be higher for longer and that the Bank will raise rates.”
“This, in turn, has pushed bond yields up, and because bonds are used to price mortgages in the swaps market, it has made fixed rate deals more expensive. Fixed rate deals dominate the market, which means higher rates hit would-be buyers hard.”
“House prices are still rising more slowly than wages, so they’re getting more affordable on paper. It’s just that, in reality, more expensive mortgage rates are pricing people out.”
“The fact that property is now losing value after inflation could have a further dampening effect on buyer confidence, especially in parts of the country where property prices are actually falling. Over the past three months, we’ve seen price drops across the South West, East Anglia, East Midlands and outer London.”
