UK house prices rose by 10% in the year to May, the fastest rate since before the 2008 financial crisis, as buyers scrambled to take advantage of the stamp duty holiday in some parts of the country.
Data from the Office for National Statistics put the average price of a property at £254,624. The annual growth appears to have been driven by buyers’ desire for larger homes and outdoor space, and the stamp duty savings that were largest on homes in England and Northern Ireland priced at £500,000 and above.
The average price of a flat was up by 6.5% year on year at £215,731, and the average cost of a detached home rose by 11.3% to £391,656.
The figures, which are based on sales that have been completed and registered, show that people moving home saw the biggest increase in prices, with former owner-occupiers paying an average of £296,872 – 10.7% more than in May 2020.
But for first-time buyers there was also a substantial increase. New entrants to the market paid an average of £213,336 for homes in May – 9.5% more than the previous year.
These buyers would already have…
