House prices see biggest yearly decline since 2009

Nationwide’s latest figures show house prices are 5.3% lower compared to August last year – the biggest annual decline since 2009. 

Nationwide said the drop represented a fall of £14,600 on a typical home in the UK since house prices peaked in August 2022.

The building society said higher borrowing costs for buyers had led to a slowdown in activity in the housing market. 

Mortgage approvals are also about 20% below pre-Covid levels. 

The Bank of England has lifted interest rates 14 times in a row, since December 2021, in a bid to clamp down on rising consumer prices in the UK. The bank’s base rate now stands at 5.25%. 

That has led to lenders raising their mortgage rates and putting increased pressure on homebuyers. 

Nationwide’s chief economist Robert Gardner said the rise in the cost of borrowing meant the fall in average house prices was “not surprising”.