The data for the UK housing market this month is both stable and interesting. This isn’t a contradiction: rather, despite widespread predictions that the situation in the Middle East would hit hard due to anticipated inflationary pressures, the UK property market remains strong.

Read on to learn more about the latest data from the May Halifax House Price Index, and specifically what it means for buyers and sellers, most notably in Kent.

The Headline Stats and Facts

• • Average selling price: £298,806 – holding steady with just a -0.1% drop since May.

• • Property price increases: Annual rate of growth is +0.5%.

• • Interest rates: 3.75% since 18 December.

• • Inflation: 2.8% - notably dipping since last month, despite the global geopolitical situation and oil prices.

• • RICS net balance score: New buyer enquiries remained negative at ‑34% in April, though slightly improved from March (‑40%). Agreed sales were largely unchanged at ‑36% (vs. ‑35%), while new instructions increased slightly to ‑3% (from ‑6%), signalling limited fresh supply to the market.

Kent-Specific Stats

• • Average time on market: Average time on market in Kent is 225 days which is marginally less than last month.

• • Number of properties for sale: There are 33,199 properties for sale in Kent. Most are three bedroom properties.

• • Average selling price in Kent: £436,041 with a median of £350,000.

What Does This Mean?

The property data this month is interesting. In the shadow of upward inflation expectations, it was anticipated that the housing market would appear somewhat subdued at best. Instead, it’s firmly holding its own and remaining steady. Indeed, despite the wider impact of the Middle East situation, inflation is – for now – not bounding out of control. This means that interest rates have stayed steady. As such, movement in the property market has remained stable.

However, as ever with an ongoing situation, it’s somewhat difficult to predict what lies ahead. While the UK housing market is downstream from the immediate impact of things like oil prices and trade repercussions due to the Strait of Hormuz, eventually there will be an impact.

As Amanda Bryden, Head of Mortgages, Halifax, said: “The housing market remains closely tied to wider global developments, with a return to sustained house price growth dependent on an improvement in the inflation outlook and a fall in mortgage costs.”

What About Kent?

It’s important to dig into the data at a local level. Realistically, national average growth figures are remaining steady because they are buoyed up by growth in specific areas, most notably Northern Ireland where prices are up nearly 8% on last year. This hides the reality in the South East where house prices are down -2.1% compared to last year. However, in Kent, house prices remain considerably higher than the average for the South East region.

It remains particularly difficult for first time buyers to get onto the ladder, particularly in more expensive areas.

The Bank of England has kept interest rates steady for nearly 6 months now, so it will be interesting to see what decision they take at the next review. This will impact the property market, of course, due to mortgage rates. However, what the market has shown us over the last year is remarkable resilience.

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