Overview
- Annual house price growth picked up to 1.0% in January, with the Nationwide average at £270,873 on a seasonally adjusted basis.
- Several lenders reduced mortgage rates in January, and agents reported a better start to 2026 with renewed buyer confidence.
- Mortgage approvals for home purchase remained close to pre-pandemic levels despite a late-2025 slowdown linked to Budget-related tax uncertainty.
- A typical first-time buyer with a 20% deposit would face payments around 32% of take-home pay, above the 30% long-run average but below the 38% peak in 2023.
- Nationwide expects activity to recover if affordability continues to improve, though pressures vary by region, with Northern Ireland and the South under more strain than parts of the North and Scotland.