BoE rate rise could bring 'golden age' of property growth to end

Last week the Bank of England came the closest to raising rates in a decade amid house price growth grinding to a halt amid political and economic uncertainty, but property owners do not have much to complain according to new research.

The Bank's Monetary Policy Committee's 5-3 vote to keep interest rates on hold was the closest since the 5-4 vote in 2007, leaving rates at their historic low of 0.25%.

Since the MPC lowers the bank rate to 0.5% in March 2009, and including the period since last August when it was moved to 0.25%, UK homeowners saw the value of their home increase 41%, according to new research that has analyses average prices across 100 UK cities.

The research, by online estate agents HouseSimple.com, found the 10 biggest property price rises since March 2009 were led by the South East, with Cambridge, London and Slough seeing average house price growth in excess of 90%.

Over the period cities in the North East -- Hartlepool, Durham, Middlesborough -- have seen prices fall.

House prices in London rose at an average of 90.8%, with the boroughs of Chelsea and Kensington topping the charts with an increase of 128.9%, while Haringey and Waltham Forest experienced average price growths of 111.7% and 106.4% respectively.

Nevertheless, if the vote for an interest rise in June passes through this could be good news to the long suffering savers.

Alex Gosling, chief executive of HouseSimple.com, said: “While UK savers have suffered over the past eight years, millions of homeowners have increased their equity in their homes substantially in this once-in-a-generation low interest rate environment.

"It’s been a golden period for UK homeowners, but there are signs that it could be coming to an end as the MPC narrowly voted to hold interest rates at 0.25%".