Halifax issues warning to anyone planning to move house in 2025

UK house prices dipped for the first time since March last month, Halifax has found. Britain’s biggest mortgage lender says say affordability could hamper further rises in the months ahead as we head beyond Christmas and into the New Year.

Data released by Halifax, Britain’s biggest mortgage lender, also showed that the price of the average home climbed by 3.3% last month compared with the same period a year earlier – down from an annual rate of 4.7% in November.

“In many areas across the country, house prices were also buoyed by demand outstripping supply, possibly further amplified by homeowners holding off putting their property on the market – perhaps in anticipating of mortgage rates reducing further,” Amanda Bryden, the head of mortgages at Halifax, said.

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Halifax warned that affordability could end up hampering further house price growth in the months ahead. “Where does that leave the housing market for 2025? While the housing market has been supported in recent months by falling mortgage rates, income growth and the announcement on upcoming stamp duty policy changes, mortgage affordability will remain a challenge for many, especially as the bank rate is likely to come down more slowly than previously predicted,” Bryden said.

“However, providing employment conditions don’t deteriorate markedly from a more recent softening, buyer demand should hold up relatively well and, taking all this into account, we’re continuing to anticipate modest house price growth this year.”

The average price of a UK home ended 2024 close to the £300,000 mark, the UK's biggest mortgage broker said. Its calculations suggested UK house prices increased by 3.3% when comparing the end of the year to the start, although the average value dipped slightly in December.

It means the average home now costs £297,166, it added. In April, house buyers in England and Northern Ireland will start paying stamp duty on properties over £125,000, instead of over £250,000 at the moment.