The building society added that house prices were up 0.4% month on month to hit £270,493 – the sixth monthly rise in a row.
Robert Gardner, Nationwide’s chief economist, said: “Housing market activity has also remained resilient in recent months, despite ongoing affordability challenges. Indeed, the second half of 2024 saw a noticeable pick up in total housing transactions, which were up 14% compared with the same period in 2023.
“However, taking 2024 as a whole, transactions were still modestly (6%) lower than the levels prevailing before the pandemic struck in 2019.
“In terms of the pattern of transactions, it is notable that first-time buyer activity continued to recover, with mortgage completions in 2024 just 5% below 2019 levels. This represents a solid performance, given the interest rate environment – for example, five-year fixed mortgage rates are currently around 4.4% (for borrowers with a 25% deposit) compared to c2% in 2019.”
Alice Haine, personal finance analyst at Bestinvest by Evelyn Partners, added: “The impending changes to stamp duty land tax thresholds, which take effect from April 1, helped to drive housing market activity in February.
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“The Government’s decision not to extend the temporary increases to the thresholds – first put in place in September 2022 by the previous Government – beyond March, has encouraged buyers to rush through deals in a bid to secure a lower tax bill while they can.
“Buyers who have already an offer accepted and are now going through the legal process may end up very disappointed if they fail to complete the purchase before the end of March. Buyers that miss the deadline face being stung with a much higher tax bill than they budgeted for. This could add thousands to a home move and force some to abandon their purchase altogether.”
