© Reuters. Buildings in the City of London are seen alongside Victorian residential housing in South London, Britain, August 1, 2023. REUTERS/ Susannah Ireland
LONDON (Reuters) -British house prices rose 2.5% in the year to January, the strongest annual growth rate for a year, according to data from mortgage lender Halifax on Wednesday which added to tentative signs of momentum in the housing market.
In month-on-month terms, house prices rose 1.3%, which marked the fourth consecutive increase.
Kim Kinnaird, director of mortgages at Halifax, said a recent drop in mortgage rates, falling inflation and a resilient labour market had helped confidence among buyers and sellers in early 2024.
But she added that there were still reasons for caution.
“Affordability challenges are likely to remain and further modest falls should not be ruled out, against a backdrop of broader uncertainty in the economic environment,” Kinnaird said.
Other gauges of the housing market have also pointed to stabilisation. Last week rival mortgage lender Nationwide said house prices had risen 0.7% in monthly terms in January – marking a fifth month without any declines.
This story originally appeared on Investing
