UK house price decline eases, but rents grow at record rate

The annual fall in UK house prices eased to just 0.2% in February, its lowest rate of decline in eight months, according to figures released on Wednesday by the Office for National Statistics, while rent inflation reached a record high.

The average price of a house in February was £281,000, with the year-on-year decline slowing from -1.3% in the 12 months to January.

House prices in England fell 1.1% year-on-year to £298,000, and in Wales declined by 1.2% to £211,000, but were up 5.6% on last year at £188,000 in Scotland.

At the same time, the ONS reported that hikes in rent reached a record high in March, rising 9.2% year-on-year on average, with growth picking up from 9.0% in the 12 months to February. This was the highest annual percentage change since these records began in 2015.

Average private rents were up 9.1% at £1,285 in England, with the highest rate of rent inflation seen in London (+11.2%) and the lowest in the North East (+6.1%). Meanwhile, rents were up 9.0% at £727 in Wales and 10.5% higher at £947 in Scotland.