Westminster house prices crashed 8.8% in May

File photo dated 14/10/14 of a sold and for sale signs. A gradual slowdown in the housing market in Scotland is likely as the cost-of-living crisis bites, a report has warned. House prices in Scotland continue to edge upwards but indicators are softening slightly, according to the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (Rics) latest survey. Issue date: Thursday May 12, 2022.

House prices crashed by 8.8% in Westminster in May, new figures show.

The large drop contributes to the longer-term trend, which has seen property prices in the area suffer a 1.1% annual decline – the worst in London.

The average Westminster house price in May was £881,375, Land Registry figures show – an 8.8% decrease on April.

Over the month, the picture was different to that across London, where prices increased 0.2%, and Westminster was lower than the 1.2% rise for the UK as a whole.

Over the last year, the average sale price of property in Westminster fell by £9,600 – putting the area bottom among London’s 33 local authorities with price data for annual growth.

The highest annual growth in the region was in Islington, where property prices increased on average by 12.2%, to £742,000.

An imbalance between supply and demand for properties has remained the primary reason behind climbing house prices across the UK throughout the pandemic.

But activity is starting to slow, with soaring inflation putting household budgets under pressure.

Sarah Coles, senior personal finance analyst at financial advice company Hargreaves Lansdown, said:“The average house price hit another record high in May, and rose faster than any time since the peak in June last year.

"However, we’re starting to see small changes in the market, which are likely to mean weaker growth in the coming months, especially if interest rates are hiked in August."

First steps on the property ladder

First-time buyers in Westminster spent an average of £797,000 on their property – £12,000 less than a year ago, and £204,000 less than in May 2017.

By comparison, former owner-occupiers paid £961,000 on average in May – 20.5% more than first-time buyers.

Property types

Owners of flats saw the biggest fall in property prices Westminster in May – they dropped 9% in price, to £818,973 on average. Over the last year, prices dropped by 1.8%.

Among other types of property:

Detached: down 6.8% monthly; up 7.4% annually; £2,822,456 averageSemi-detached: down 7.3% monthly; up 5.8% annually; £2,384,084 averageTerraced: down 7.6% monthly; up 3.3% annually; £1,571,487 average

How do property prices in Westminster compare?

Buyers paid 67.5% more than the average price in London (£526,000) in May for a property in Westminster. Across London, property prices are high compared to those across the UK, where the average cost £283,000.

The most expensive properties in London were in Kensington and Chelsea – £1.3 million on average, and 1.5 times as much as more than in Westminster. Kensington and Chelsea properties cost 3.8 times as much as homes in Barking and Dagenham (£345,000 average), at the other end of the scale.

The highest property prices across the UK were in Kensington and Chelsea.

Factfile

Average property price in May

Westminster: £881,375London:£526,183UK: £283,496

Annual change to May

Westminster: -1.1%London: +8.2%UK: +12.8%

Highest and lowest annual growth in London

Islington: +12.2%Westminster: -1.1%