The United Kingdom’s housing sector has recorded a boom over the past decade to emerge among industries that have thrived after the financial crisis. As the prices of houses continue to soar, the focus is on how the current economic downturn will impact the space.

In this line, according to data acquired by Finbold, the average cost of a house in the United Kingdom has steadily grown in the last 11 years culminating in a peak of £292,100 (or $315,700) as of July 2022. As of July 2012, the price stood at £170,700, growing by 71% to July 2022’s value. In July 2021, the value stood at £253,400 after appearing to flatten in July 2018 at £255,100.

Elsewhere, London continues to lead in prices, with an average house costing £537,920 as of June 2022, representing year-over-year (YoY) growth of 6.3% from a similar period in 2021. Cambridge ranked second with a price of £506,804 in June this year with a YoY growth of 10.31%. In June 2022, prices of houses in Oxford ranked third at £473,527 with a YoY growth of 5.07%.

Bristol stood in the fifth spot with houses valued at £343,292 on average in June 2022, surging 9.35% from a similar period in 2021. At the same time, Bournemouth registered the highest YoY change in house prices between June 2021 and June 2022 at 12.88%.

Housing sector uncertainty

The continued growth has come in the wake of the sustained economic downturn mainly triggered by the pandemic. In this line, the research highlights how the current conditions might impact the housing sector. According to the research report:

“Despite the growth, there is a widespread projection that the housing sector might experience a drop as the economy stares at a possible regression. Homebuyers are facing the challenge of rising mortgage rates at a time when their deposit savings are under threat due to the high cost of living. Consequently, most homebuyers may take time to reassess the situation before buying a house.”

Notably, the UK’s real estate uncertainty is witnessed in the equities market, which has recorded a drop in the past year. The poor performance in the stocks has resulted in slowed-down dividend incomes.