London house prices are falling at the fastest pace since the depths of the recession almost a decade ago, with the capital’s most expensive areas seeing the biggest declines.
Average prices fell to £593,396 (S$1.08 million) in January, an annual decline of 2.6 per cent that’s the biggest since August 2009, according to a report published by Acadata on Monday. London’s highest-priced boroughs were the biggest losers, led by Wandsworth’s 14.9 per cent slump and a drop of 12.2 per cent in Southwark.
London prices fell 0.8 per cent in January alone, equivalent to almost £5,000, showing the weakness that was present for much of last year continued into 2018.
The capital dragged down nationwide growth in February to 0.5 per cent, Acadata said. Even excluding London and the southeast, the 2.5 per cent annual rate of increase in January remained well short of the almost 7 per cent growth seen as recently as 2016. The housing slump may also be weighing on consumer spending, which fell for the ninth month in February according to a separate report by Visa. Households spent the least on recreation since 2010.
Source Credit: Business Times
