House prices suffered their biggest fall since 2008 this year after a sharp rise in borrowing costs put off buyers. Prices are 4.5% down from their all-time peak in the summer of 2022 - and the building society's experts said there was unlikely to be a rapid rebound in 2024.
Robert Gardner of Nationwide, said that the number of transactions this year involving a mortgage was down by around a fifth compared with pre-Covid levels reflecting higher borrowing costs.
Hopes are growing that, with inflation now falling, the Bank of England can start to cut rates after holding its benchmark lending rates at 5.25%. Yet with borrowing costs only coming down moderately and the economy still sluggish, house prices could fall by a further 2%, Mr Gardner warned, 'A rapid rebound in activity or house prices in 2024 appears unlikely,' he said.
Daily Mail.
