A new report from Halifax shows the UK have seen an increase of £15,000 on house prices since June. The report came shortly after rivals Nationwide’s report, and Halifax stated the average U.K. property price to be £253,243, an increase from £237,834 where it was at in June.
“In percentage terms that equates to 6.5%—the strongest five-monthly gain since 2004,” Russell Galley, managing director at Halifax, said in the report.
The surge in demand for new properties is powering the U.K.’s market and is a side effect of the coronavirus pandemic. Buyers are looking for more space, in more rural areas with a place for remote working.
In November, property prices rose 1.2% from October—adding almost £3,000 to the cost of a typical U.K. home in that month alone—and jumped 7.6% from November 2019.
The stamp duty holiday has been a temporary economy-boosting measure, but it will end at the end of March 2020. It is likely that the surge in the market will continue until the March deadline, but after that we should see the market return to a steadier speed.