UK house prices haven’t risen in real terms for a DECADE

UK house prices have FALLEN in real terms over the past decade despite the average London home now being worth £475,000, latest figures reveal

  • House prices in the UK have risen by 34 per cent on average in the last decade
  • But when adjusted for inflation house prices have actually fallen by 0.3 per cent
  • Average house price in London has gone from £338,000 in 2009 to £475,000 

UK house prices have fallen in real terms for a decade, despite the average London home now being worth £475,000, new figures have revealed.

The figures, compiled by Savills, show that house prices have risen by 34 per cent on average in the past decade, but when adjusted for inflation, they have fallen by 0.3 per cent.

The areas that had the best growth are in London – where properties have gone up 72 per cent on average in the last ten years – and the south of England. 

According to data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS), the average house price in the capital has risen from £338,000 in 2009, to £475,000. 

The north of England and Scotland have registered the least house price growth in the last decade.

The areas that had the best growth are in London – where properties have gone up 72 per cent on average in the last ten years – and the south of England

Lucian Cook, head of research at Savills, told The Times: ‘There has been practically no real house price growth across the country as a whole.

‘That is reflective of the fact that parts of the country have been left behind until very recently.

‘A lot of those lower value markets in the north of England are only returning to house price growth very late in day.’ 

As well as falling prices, the past decade has also seen a low level of home ownership.

The number of first-time buyers has fallen by 26 per cent for a combination of reasons, including rising house prices and tighter mortgage regulation.

The level of housing sales has also plummeted dramatically, with more than 11 million housing sales in the past 10 years.

This is 4.3 million fewer than the previous decade, and 7.7 million fewer than the 1980s.