UK house prices rebound in September as growth rises

UK house price growth rebounded in September, a tracker from mortgage lender Nationwide showed on Wednesday.

Property values increased by 0.5% month-on-month in September, following a 0.1% fall in August, taking the average UK house price to GBP271,995, Nationwide Building Society said.

September's rise was sharper than an increase of 0.2% that had been expected by the FXStreet-cited consensus.

The typical UK house price increased 2.2% annually in September, compared with 2.1% in August.

Robert Gardner, Nationwide's chief economist, said: "The broad stability in the annual rate of house price growth over the past three months mirrors that of activity. The number of mortgages approved for house purchase have been hovering at around 65,000 cases per month, close to the pre-pandemic average (despite the higher interest rate environment).

"Despite ongoing uncertainties in the global economy, underlying conditions for potential home buyers in the UK remain supportive."

He added: "Unemployment is low, earnings are rising at a healthy pace, household balance sheets are strong and borrowing costs are likely to moderate a little further if Bank Rate is lowered in the coming quarters as we, and most other analysts, expect. Providing the broader economic recovery is maintained, housing market activity is likely to strengthen gradually in the quarters ahead."