House Price Index Apr 2025
With higher stamp duty rates starting the 1st April, there was a massive spike in transactions in March to beat the stamp duty deadline - 177K transactions, more than double the level last March. It's not surprising that buyer demand cooled in April. And with homes for sale at their highest level in a decade, house price growth continues to be relatively modest. Reports are that agreed sales continue to be ahead of last year and with mortgage affordability improving, activity is expected to regain pace in the months ahead.
What’s happening nationally
House prices were up on average +0.3% over the past month and+4.3% over the past year. Massive March transaction rise — more than double last year before the stamp duty rise in April.
Most of the indices reported a rise in house prices over the past month: Halifax (+0.3%), Land Registry (+1.1%) and Rightmove reporting asking prices (+1.4%). The exception is Nationwide reporting a slight dip (-0.6%) in April and a corresponding slowing of annual house price growth. Across all the indices, house prices are up over the past year: Land Registry (+6.4%), Nationwide (+3.4%), Halifax (+3.2%) and Rightmove reporting asking prices (+1.3%).
Note that there has been a change of methodology in the calculation of the Land Registry house price index. From February 2025 reporting, January 2023 became the new reference period for inflation rates. Land Registry has been re-referenced because the types of property being sold can change over time. They have also noted that the March results are provisional as transactions involving the creation of a new register, such as new builds, are more complex and an increase in applications has created a backlog.
Indices based on:
Land Registry – registered property transactions in March.
Nationwide & Halifax – mortgage valuations in April.
Rightmove – asking prices posted on Rightmove in April.
*Rightmove is not included in the index average as the basis for its index is different (asking price vs agreed sale price)
| Index reports: | Monthly change | Annual change |
|---|---|---|
| Land registry | +1.1% | +6.4% |
| Nationwide | -0.6% | +3.4% |
| Halifax | +0.3% | +3.2% |
| Rightmove | +1.4% | +1.3% |
| Average change | +0.3% | +4.3% |
House prices in your area
Areas with the biggest rise in house prices over the past month were: The North East (+4.2%), North West (+2.5%) and Yorkshire & Humber (+2.3%). House prices were up in all other areas of the UK over the past month apart from London (-0.3%).
Over the last year, house prices have increased in all areas with the biggest rises in the North East (+14.3%), Northern Ireland (+9.5%), Yorkshire & Humber (+9.5%), the North West (+9.4%) and West Midlands (+7.8%).
Average house prices remain highest in London (£552K) and lowest in the North East (£168K).
House prices increased in the last year for semi-detached (+8.2%), terraced (+8.0%), detached (+5.1%) properties and for flats/ maisonettes (3.4%).
| UK Region | Average price £ | Monthly change | Annual change |
|---|---|---|---|
| England | |||
| Nothern Ireland | |||
| Scotland | |||
| Wales | |||
| North West | |||
| Yorkshire and The Humber | |||
| North East | |||
| West Midlands | |||
| East Midlands | |||
| South West | |||
| East of England | |||
| South East | |||
| London |
| UK City | Average price | Annual change |
|---|---|---|
Market Monitor
With rising stamp duty rates starting the 1st April, there was a massive spike in transactions in March to beat the stamp duty deadline with 177K transactions, up 62% on February (110K) and more than double (+104%) the number of transactions March last year (when transactions of 86.8K were below the long run average).
The level of new buyer enquiries fell again in April, while new listings for sales were up again this month.
The average time to secure a buyer has improved to 59 days in April according to Rightmove, down from 64 days in March – below the 12 month average of 64 days.
How busy is the market?
- Not busy
- Normal
- Very busy
- Transactions massive spike with stamp duty deadline
- Total transactions in March 2025 177K
- +62% versus last month
- +104% from March last year (when transactions were below the long run average)
Homes for sale vs homebuyers
- Good availability of homes
- Normal
- Shortage of homes
- Buyer enquiries down again(-33% RICS April data)
- Seller instructions up slightly (+6% RICS April data)
- Average stock per agent 60 in April; up from 59 last month (incl under offer/ Sold STC Rightmove)
Average speed of sale
- Fast
- Normal
- Slow
- Apr figure: 59 days to find a buyer down from 64 days last month below 12 month average of 64 days (Rightmove)
What the experts say
Rightmove
“The average price of property coming to market for sale rises by 1.4% (+£5,312) in April to £377,182. A snapshot of the post-stamp-duty-increase market suggests movers are carrying on and have adjusted to the tax rise as the level of agreed sales falling through remains steady — most buyers who missed the deadline are still proceeding. After a busier than usual March, new buyer demand slowed in April to 4% below the same month in 2024. However, demand in the year to date is still 3% ahead of last year and the number of sales being agreed in the last month is 5% higher than at this time last year indicating that with a decade high number of homes for sale (homes for sale are 14% ahead of last year), spoiled for choice buyers are still being tempted by the right property at the right price. As new seller activity outpaces new buyer demand, some caution on price expectations is needed to achieve a sale.”
Nationwide
“April saw a slowing in UK house price growth to 3.4%, from 3.9% in March falling -0.6% month on month. The softening in house price growth was to be expected, given the changes to stamp duty. Early indications suggest there was a significant jump in transactions in March, with buyers bringing forward purchases to avoid additional tax obligations. The market is likely to remain a little soft in the coming months, following the pattern typically observed following the end of stamp duty holidays. Nevertheless, activity is likely to pick up steadily as summer progresses, since underlying conditions for potential home buyers in the UK remain supportive. Borrowing costs are likely to moderate if the Bank Rate is lowered further in the coming quarters as we and most other analysts expect. Indeed, swap rates (which underpin fixed rate mortgage pricing) have moderated in recent weeks.”
Zoopla (Hometrack)
“Buyer demand has cooled in recent weeks (but is still 1% higher than last year), tempered by the end of stamp duty relief, seasonal factors and economic uncertainty. The supply of homes for sale continues to expand (12% higher than a year ago), slowing house price inflation. We expect continued growth in sales agreed (which are 6% higher than a year ago), and slow but steady house price inflation (predicted to slow towards 1% to 1.5% in the coming months).”
Halifax
“UK house prices rose by +0.3% in April. The annual growth rate also ticked up to +3.2%. We know stamp duty changes prompted a surge in transactions in the early part of this year, as buyers rushed to beat the tax-rise deadline. However, this didn’t lead to a significant increase in property prices, with the last six months characterised by a stability in prices rarely seen since the pandemic. While the market has cooled slightly since this rush, buyer activity remains strong in comparison to recent years. Mortgage rates have continued to fall, with most lenders now offering rates below 4%. Coupled with positive earnings growth that has outpaced inflation, these factors have helped to steadily improve affordability for many buyers. There is likely to be a bump-up in consumer price inflation, but with further base rate cuts expected, we anticipate a similar trend of modest price growth this year.”
RICS
“The April 2025 RICS UK Residential Survey results point to a further weakening across the sales market, evidenced by measures of activity slipping deeper into negative territory over the month. Similarly, near-term expectations suggest this subdued trend will persist through spring, albeit sentiment regarding the twelve-month outlook appears somewhat more resilient at this stage.”
