Surprise rise in house prices

The Nationwide and Halifax have been fluctuating between house price falls and increases for a few months now. One theory is that it's mostly higher priced properties that are selling, which tend to maintain their value better. But certainly, if you look on Rightmove, there are a lot of price reductions in many areas.

To me, this is the lull before the storm. Interest rates are still going up, and many people will need to downsize when faced with the higher cost of remortgaging. I firmly believe we'll see a significant fall in house prices over the next year or so.

"Surprise rise in house prices" This is not as surprising as the headline suggests. Although the economic situation is bleak with inflation still at around 10%, the housing market crash that has been predicted has not happened and may not be as bad as predicted. Rents are at an all-time high which has prompted many of the current generation of renters to explore their options when it comes to mortgage affordability and whether they can get onto the property ladder. Many of these people have been surprised that a mortgage is more affordable than they initially thought which is one of the reasons the housing market is still strong as the demand to own your own home will always remain. There are other factors such as people are always looking to move home whether that's to upgrade or relocate for whatever reason. The fact that Skipton Building Society has recently introduced its 100% LTV Track Record mortgage for first-time buyers which requires no deposit will further boost the market.