House price growth continues to slow

House price growth slowed for a third consecutive month in June, according to the latest data from Nationwide. The average price of a home in the UK rose by just 0.3% last month, the smallest monthly increase since last September. The average price is now a record £271,613. Nationwide said there were “tentative signs of a slowdown” given that mortgage approvals are now falling back towards pre-pandemic levels. But the building society’s chief economist, Robert Gardner, said: “Nevertheless, the housing market has retained a surprising amount of momentum given the mounting pressure on household budgets from high inflation, which has already driven consumer confidence to a record low.” The South West overtook Wales as the strongest-performing region between April and the end of June. London remains the weakest-performing region. The Times (£)