House prices fell month on month for the first time in 15 months in October, according to an index. The 0.9% drop marked the first monthly decline since July 2021 and was the biggest decrease since June 2020.
Annual house price growth also slowed sharply to 7.2% in October, from 9.5% in September, Nationwide Building Society said. Across the UK, the average house price in October was £268,282 – and the housing market looks set to slow in the months ahead, the society added.
Robert Gardner, Nationwide’s chief economist, said: “October saw a sharp slowdown in annual house price growth, to 7.2% from 9.5% in September. The market has undoubtedly been impacted by the turmoil following the mini-budget, which led to a sharp rise in market interest rates.
