Buying a new home in Britain has become a little more affordable this year as average wages have risen faster than house prices and mortgage costs, the biggest lender said on Thursday mortgage in the country.
Halifax, part of Lloyds Banking Group, said the average house in the third quarter of 2024 cost 6.55 times the average full-time annual income, down from 6.62 in 2023 and a record 7.24 in mid-2022.
The cost of servicing a new mortgage has fallen to its lowest level in just over two years, to 29% of average income, down from 33% a year ago, based on a mortgage of 'a term of 30 years, a fixed interest rate of five years and a deposit of 25%.
“While housing is becoming more affordable, progress is incremental,” said Amanda Bryden, head of mortgages at Halifax.
“Buying property remains a significant challenge for many people, with prices still near record highs and interest rates likely to remain higher than we have been accustomed to over the past year. the last decade,” Ms. Bryden said.
The Bank of England raised interest rates to 5.25% in August 2023, a 15-year low, and began cutting them in August this year, before cutting them to 4.75% this year. this month.
Economists polled by Reuters last week expected the BoE to cut rates to 3.75% by the end of next year, while predicting that house prices would rise by 3.1%. % next year and 4% in 2026.
According to Halifax, the average house price in the third quarter of 2024 was 292,508 pounds ($368,823), only slightly higher than two years ago, although prices vary widely across the UK, even if we take into account wage differences between regions.
Housing was least affordable in the south-east of England and London – where new mortgages accounted for 39% and 36% of local wages – and least expensive in the north-east of England, at 19 %, and in Scotland and Northern Ireland, 22% of local full-time wages.
($1 = 0.7931 pounds)
