The average UK property price in August was £295,903, according to HM Land Registry data published by the Office for National Statistics.

That’s 13.6% higher than a year earlier and up 0.9% since July.

House price growth was strongest in the South West where prices increased by 17% in the year to August 2022.

The lowest annual growth was in London, where prices increased by 8.3% over the same time period.

Home nations

At the country level, the largest annual house price growth in the year to August 2022 was recorded in Wales, where house prices increased by 14.6%.

England saw house prices increase by 14.3% in the year to August 2022, while Scotland recorded a 9.7% rise.

In Northern Ireland house prices rose by 9.6% over the year to Quarter 2 (April to June).

What do the experts say?

Iain McKenzie, CEO of The Guild of Property Professionals, said: “The average price of a house in the UK is now almost £300,000. This will make it more challenging for first-time buyers already struggling to get on the ladder because of rising interest rates and mortgage availability.

“It is reassuring that the Chancellor announced on Monday that there will be no changes to the stamp duty threshold. As we are expecting house prices to cool even further, we may see the return of a buyers’ market after all.”

Joe Garner, managing director at London-based property developer, NewPlace, warned: “A house price crash is now a fait accompli. The only unknown is how hard and how fast the crash is. We will now be lucky if we manage to get away with a 10% drop in prices. With inflation back in double digits, confidence among buyers has been shattered.”

Ross Boyd, founder of Dashly.com noted that these figures represent a very different market at the end of summer: “Compared to August, the property market in October is in an alternate reality,” he explained.

“The mini-Budget and chaos in the markets have blown the whole market apart. Confidence is in tatters. House prices could fall by up to 10% in the next six months, potentially more. With mortgage rates having shot up, the buying power and confidence people had just a few months ago no longer exists and prices can only go one way as a result, and that’s down.”

Jonathan Hopper, CEO of Garrington Property Finders, agreed that the market was completely different now compared to August. He said: “Though they were collected just a few weeks ago, the ONS’s figures are from a different age and a different property market.

“Cool heads in the property market have long seen a soft landing for the market as inevitable. But the speed at which interest rates have risen has thrown many movers off-balance, triggering a hard reset on what many buyers can afford. In some areas, the landing will be uncomfortably bumpy.”