Home Asking Price Index, February 2013: spring price surge starts in London
Asking prices in England and Wales rose 2.6% annually, with London surging 6% year-on-year while northern regions lagged behind.
This is the February 2013 edition of the Home Asking Price Index, released on 12 February 2013, under the headline:
Spring Price Surge Starts in London
The headlines and summary below are the report's own words, with the key figures as it published them, followed by the report's charts and regional tables as printed.
Headlines
- Asking prices jump 0.5% in the last month, exceeding seasonal expectations.
- Demand rising: Typical Time on Market 10 days lower than in February 2012.
- Supply still down: New listings down 5% in Jan vs. Jan 2012.
- Over the last month asking prices increased in most English regions and Scotland. Prices fell in the North East, the North West and Wales.
- Market house prices surge by 1.5% in Greater London since last month and by 6% over the last year.
- Annual change in UK home prices: +2.6%
- 6-month change: +0.2%
Summary
There's more than a hint of spring in the UK property market with property prices rising 0.5% since January and 2.6% over the last 12 months. Typical time on market is also falling fast as 2013 gets underway. However, it is the Greater London market performance that is simply breathtaking, with a rise of 1.5% since January and a 6% rise over the last year. Attendant regions, the South East and East Anglia are also quick off the mark with monthly rises of 0.9% and 0.5% respectively.
By way of contrast the Northern regions appear still frozen solid. Asking prices have fallen in Wales, the North West and the North East since January. Moreover, despite the overall UK recovery the North West is still showing year-on-year price erosion of 0.7% and the North East has by far the worst Typical Time on Market (213 days). The bi-polar nature of the UK property market looks set to continue in 2013.
Buy-to-Let lending is proving to be a key and growing driver in the current market. BTL lending increased around 20% over the course of 2012 and looks set to continue growing throughout 2013, adding impetus to both the sales and rental sectors.
Key figures
| Measure | Figure |
|---|---|
| England & Wales average asking price | £232,348 |
| Monthly change in asking prices | +0.5% |
| Annual change in asking prices | +2.6% |
| 6-month change | +0.2% |
| Typical Time on Market | 137 days |
| New listings change (Jan vs Jan 2012) | -5% |
| HAPI index (England & Wales) | 99.8 |
Figures are for England and Wales unless the report states otherwise, as published in the edition.
Charts from the report
Laspeyres Index based on Weighted Arithmetic Mean of Weighted Arithmetic Mean of Regional House Prices. [May04 = 100]
Source: HM Land Registry
Regional tables
Regional asking prices for February 2013, showing gains and losses since February 2012 and current typical
| Current average price | 12-month change | Median ToM (days) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Greater London | £364,247 | +6.0% | 99 |
| South East | £298,373 | +3.5% | 105 |
| East Anglia | £249,618 | +2.6% | 119 |
| South West | £253,978 | +1.9% | 126 |
| Wales | £174,133 | +1.4% | 188 |
| East Midlands | £173,373 | +1.3% | 141 |
| West Midlands | £188,597 | +1.1% | 145 |
| North East | £152,033 | +1.1% | 213 |
| Scotland | £159,391 | +0.5% | 186 |
| Yorkshire and Humber | £167,098 | +0.4% | 180 |
| North West | £171,100 | -0.7% | 177 |
| England & Wales | £232,348 | +2.6% | 137 |
time on market.
Read the full February 2013 edition (PDF, 8 pages)
About the Home Asking Price Index
The Home Asking Price Index measures the change in the prices sellers ask for residential property across England, Wales and Scotland. Today it is computed every month from around half a million advertised homes and is mix-adjusted, so a change in what happens to be on the market does not move the figure; earlier editions state the sample they were built from. Because an asking price is set months before a sale completes, the index runs around five months ahead of completed-sale measures such as the UK House Price Index.
Every edition in the archive, back to October 2006, is listed on the index page. How we measure the UK property market explains the listing data behind it, and today's figures by area are on house prices and rental prices.
Text and figures above are quoted from the February 2013 edition as published, with punctuation normalised for the web, and are not revised. Later editions may restate them.
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