This will be the highest level seen since the same period prior to the EU Referendum.
Annual house price growth in England and Wales is set to average 4.3% over the next three months according to the reallymoving house price forecast for February.
This will be the highest level seen since the same period prior to the EU Referendum, when average annual growth hit 4.5%.
Dips in February (-1.1%) and March (-0.7%) will be mitigated by strong monthly growth of 4.3% in April, as the so-called ‘Boris bounce’ reported in the New Year becomes evident in completed sales.
Annual growth of 5.9% in April 2020 will be the largest year-on-year increase recorded since March 2016 when house prices in England and Wales rose 7% year-on-year.
Rob Houghton, chief executive of reallymoving, said: “Our forecasts for annual growth indicate that we’re on course to see the strongest period of year-on-year price increases since just prior to the EU Referendum in 2016.
“Growing certainty about the UK’s future direction following the General Election appears to be prompting the release of some of the pent-up demand in the market from buyers and sellers who have adopted a policy of ‘wait and see’ over the last few months.
"This surge of optimism is clearly evident in sales agreed in January, which we anticipate will be visible in Land Registry data in April.
“However, if trade talks between the UK and the EU fail to progress well this brighter outlook for the housing market could be short-lived, in which case this spring could present the best window of opportunity to sell for some time.”
