"Whilst we haven't seen the meteoric rates of house price growth recorded during the pandemic years, the vast majority of homeowners have still seen the value of their home increase, and in many cases by more than enough to cover the cost of Christmas"
- Verona Frankish - Yopa
Despite a quieter year for the UK property market, the vast majority of homeowners will have effectively seen their property pay for Christmas, based on the increase in the average house price versus the average festive spend, according to research from Yopa.
Yopa analysed house price growth since the start of the year across the UK market before comparing this uplift to the average household spend on Christmas during the festive season.
Across the UK as a whole, the average house price has increased by £4,583 since January, more than enough to cover the typical cost of Christmas, which currently sits at an average of £1,626.
At the regional level, every area of the UK market has seen house prices increase by more than the cost of Christmas, with the exception of just three regions: the South East, South West and London.
In the South East, the average house price has risen by just £1,449 since the start of the year, not quite enough to cover the cost of Christmas. In the South West, the average house price has increased by a paltry £446, while in London, they have actually fallen by £16,711.
At the local authority level, Yopa's analysis shows that a whopping 258 local authorities are on the nice list, having seen house prices increase by more than enough to cover the average cost of Christmas.
Nowhere more so than in Uttlesford, where the average house price has climbed by £31,061 since the start of the year. Other areas seeing some of the largest monetary increases include East Cambridgeshire (£28,066), Horsham (£27,522), Oxford (£26,520), Bromley (£26,421), East Hertfordshire (£26,166), Southwark (£25,484) and Chelmsford (£22,920).
However, there are 102 local authorities where the average house price increase has not been enough to fully fund the typical Christmas spend, and in 73 of these areas prices have actually fallen since January.
The City of London has seen the largest decline with a drop of £209,996, while Kensington and Chelsea has dropped by £132,339, and the City of Westminster has also suffered a six-figure fall of £126,531.
"It's been a somewhat unsettled year for the UK property market, overshadowed by economic uncertainty which has resulted in a muted level of market activity right up until last month's Autumn Budget," said Verona Frankish, chief executive of Yopa.
"Despite this, the market has stood strong, and whilst we haven't seen the meteoric rates of house price growth recorded during the pandemic years, the vast majority of homeowners have still seen the value of their home increase, and in many cases by more than enough to cover the cost of Christmas."
