UK Nationwide House Price Growth Accelerates

(RTTNews) - UK house price growth accelerated in January as uncertainty around the budget faded, monthly data from the Nationwide Building Society showed Monday.

House prices rose at a pace of 1.0 percent on a yearly basis in January after climbing 0.6 percent in December. This was faster than economists' forecast of 0.7 percent.

Month-on-month, house prices moved up 0.3 percent, in line with expectations, and in contrast to the 0.4 percent fall in December.

Reflecting uncertainty around potential property tax changes ahead of the budget, housing market activity dipped at the end of 2025, Nationwide's Chief Economist Robert Gardner said.

However, he observed that the number of mortgages approved for house purchase remained close to the levels prevailing before the pandemic.

Housing market activity is expected to recover in the coming quarters, especially if the improving affordability trend seen last year is maintained, Gardner added.

Further, the economist observed that affordability constraints eased in 2025, thanks to earnings growth outpacing house price growth and also a steady decline in mortgage rates. Consequently, first-time buyer activity continued to rise as a share of house purchases over the last year.