And the top-performing region for 2016 is… East Anglia

Nationwide’s most recent House Price Index Report shows that East Anglia tops the table for 2016 regional UK growth with average values rising year-on-year by 10.1%, the first time our region has led the table since 2010.  More positively, if we look at the percentage change for Q4 of 2016, East Anglia was the only southern region not to see a further slow in annual price growth versus Q3 with Q4 average prices reaching £218,544.

Overall, Nationwide reveals that average 2016 UK prices ended the year at £205,898, representing annual house price inflation of 4.4%, the same figure as 2015.

For the first time since 2008, London’s house price inflation was less that the UK average, standing at 3.7%.  The weakest performing region was the North, reporting almost no rise at all for 2016, the average gap compared with the South continuing to widen at £170,000, approximately £11,500 greater than last year, thus creating a “striking” difference in affordability.

Robert Gardner, the Chief Economist for Nationwide surmised that annual UK house price growth was stable and commented on the outlook for 2017:

“Looking ahead to 2017, house price prospects will depend crucially on developments in the wider economy, around which there is a greater degree of uncertainty than usual.

“Like most forecasters, including the Bank of England, we expect the UK economy to slow modestly next year, which is likely to result in less robust labour market conditions and modestly slower house price growth.

“But we continue to think a small gain – around two percent – is more likely than a decline over 2017 as a whole, since low interest rates are expected to help underpin demand while a shortage of homes on the market will continue to provide support for house prices.” 

Click here for Nationwide’s latest House Price Index report.