Only about one in seven homes across the UK has consistently increased in value annually since June 2022, according to new estimates from property website Zoopla.
The analysis scrutinised individual home valuations, tracking their performance from June 2021 through to June 2026.
Zoopla specifically focused on comparing a property’s value in June of each year against the same month in the preceding year: for example, checking if a home’s value in June 2022 surpassed its June 2021 valuation.
This detailed examination revealed that just 14 per cent of UK homes – a figure representing over four million properties – had experienced an annual increase in value each June from 2022 to 2026.
While consistent year-on-year growth for individual properties remains uncommon, Zoopla’s broader house price index offers a different perspective.
It indicates that the average UK home value has risen by 15.3 per cent over the past five years, equating to an average increase of £36,100 per property.
The impact of mortgage rate increases
Zoopla said that rises in mortgage rates, affecting borrowers’ costs, will have had an impact over the five-year period.
Richard Donnell, executive director at Zoopla, said: “Housing markets across Northern Ireland, the North and Scotland have seen homeowners keep building equity in their home because the local housing market was less exposed to the affordability pressures that higher mortgage rates bring.
“For homeowners, this analysis highlights why you cannot rely on national or regional averages when assessing what your home is worth.
“Trends vary by property type and at a hyper local level.
“Understanding whether your local area has consistently built equity or flatlined is essential information, if you want to understand what you can afford to buy next or you are actively planning your next move.”
Aneisha Beveridge, research director at Connells Group, said: “The UK’s housing market has become increasingly fragmented over the last five years.
“The strongest performance has generally come from more affordable markets across the north of England, Scotland and Northern Ireland, where lower price points have helped insulate buyers from higher mortgage rates and supported continued demand.
“At the same time, the pandemic sparked a surge in demand for larger homes in commutable areas outside London, driving strong price growth across much of the south between 2020 and 2022.
“However, as mortgage rates rose and stamp duty incentives were withdrawn, that momentum faded and price growth in many of these markets has since come under pressure.
