House Prices Dip In UK in January

British house prices fell for the first time in seven months in January before the end of a tax cut for buyers on March 31, mortgage lender Nationwide said on 2nd February, adding that the m

BY Realty Plus
Published - Thursday, 04 Feb, 2021

British house prices fell for the first time in seven months in January before the end of a tax cut for buyers on March 31, mortgage lender Nationwide said on 2nd February, adding that the market could weaken sharply. House prices jumped in 2020 after Britain’s first coronavirus lockdown last spring, helped by finance minister Rishi Sunak’s decision to suspend purchase taxes on properties worth up to 500,000 pounds ($684,400.00) and by people seeking bigger homes in response to the lockdown restrictions. But Nationwide said they dropped by a monthly 0.3% in January, slowing annual growth to 6.4% from 7.3% in December, which was the biggest jump in six years. Samuel Tombs, an economist with said options to help the housing market included a relaxation of mortgage affordability rules by the Bank of England or a new government mortgage-guarantee scheme.