Insight: The Housing Market June 2022

The house price boom continues, but there are signs that it is slowing. Here we take a detailed look at the current state of play in the UK’s housing market in June 2022 before revealing some interesting on-the-ground news in Kent.

The headline stats and facts

• Average selling price: £289,099 (+ £3,020 from May)
• Property rice increases: Prices rose 10.5% in the year to April, representing eleven continuous months of property value increases.
• Interest rates: 1%
• Inflation: 9%
• The Jubilee stats: Nationwide reports that the average house price in 1952 was £1,891. This would be about £62,000 today. In real terms, house prices are 4.3 times higher in real terms than when the Queen became Queen!
• Annual house price inflation has dropped slightly but remains high
• Rural areas have seen greatest growth in property values
• Property transactions: HMRC showed the number of home sales reduced by 3.9% (seasonally adjusted).

What does this mean?

In June 2022, getting on the housing ladder and making a jump up a rung on the ladder, is increasingly difficult. With cost of living rises and wages rising but failing to keep pace with house prices and mortgage lending conditions, an individual’s savings can’t amass at the rate at which house prices rise. Growth in house prices has been sharp for eleven months now. There remains an imbalance between supply and demand and this is the central reason why prices continue their upwards trend.

However, and a glimmer of hope for those considering moving in the future, is that while there was a 1% increase in house prices last month, representing annual growth of 10.5%, this is in fact the slowest rate of growth we’ve seen in 2022. Alongside this, there are early indications that mortgage activity is decreasing with latest Bank of England figures showing a 5.1% drop in approved mortgages in April. This is combined with tougher financial times for homeowners due to inflation and cost of living rises. These tentative signs of cooling indicate that the tide is starting to turn. It won’t be long until we are on the downward slope of it being a sellers’ market and more hope is afforded to purchasers.

Bearing in mind, that in real terms, house price growth over the last decade has been astronomical, we’ve a long way to go for things to truly change. Indeed, the average cost of a home has risen by 74% in the last decade.

Eyes on the ground in Kent

As expected, the national data is relevant to Kent. However, there are some interesting key points. While the national average house price is £289,099 representing a +10.5% annual change, the average house price in the South East is £391,845 representing a +11.4% annual change. We know, from the data we shared in last month’s report, that this picture is particularly marked in Kent, specifically eastern towns like Thanet, Dover and Maidstone.

Lastly, to pique your curiosity about the Kentish housing market, a fascinating article from Kent Online shows the same property for sale in Herne Bay in 1982 and now in 2022. The one bed flats were for sale in 1982 at £18,000 with a 100% mortgage. A flat in the same block is now £105,000 and 100% mortgages are as rare as hen’s teeth!