House price growth to reach 17.5% by year end

Annual house price growth will reach 17.5% by the end of the year, according to quote service Reallymoving.
Such is the urgency for home sales to be completed before the end of the stamp duty holiday, prices are expected to rise by 8.8% over the next three months alone, including a 6.1% increase between September and October.
If Reallymoving is accurate in its predictions, which are based on deals already agreed, then the typical price agreed will rise to just shy of £342,000 in December.
Rob Houghton, chief executive of reallymoving, said: “Our data indicates continued strong price increases in the run up to Christmas but the slowdown in the rate of growth in November and December could be an early sign that the post-lockdown spike in activity is beginning to run out of steam.
“For the remainder of the year the stamp duty holiday will continue to support demand but the real test will be the start of 2021, when the window for offering on a property and completing before the March 31st deadline begins to close. This is likely to be in the context of rising unemployment and continued lockdowns, impeding economic activity and denting consumer confidence.
“Increasing numbers of first-time buyers have been locked out of the market in recent months due to competition for homes and the withdrawal of high Loan to Value mortgages.
“But if the government presses ahead with the launch of its proposed 95% loans in spring 2021, that would help overcome the biggest barrier to home ownership for thousands of first-time buyers, boosting demand at the lower end of the market at a crucial time.”
Source: propertywire