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• Average mortgage for UK first-time buyer hits record high of £210,800

Natiowide also reports that the price gap between houses in the more expensive south and the cheaper north of England has shrunk to a 12-year low this year.

This was partly due to the London housing market lagging behind.

London was the weakest performing region in the first nine months of the year with annual growth averaging 1.3%.

This was part of a wider trend that saw house price growth in the northern regions of England outpacing the southern regions. As a result, the price differential narrowed to its lowest since 2013. The average price of a home in northern regions of England is now almost 58% of that in the southern regions, well above the lows of c48% seen in 2017.

“Looking ahead, we expect housing market activity to strengthen a little further as affordability improves gradually (as it has been in recent quarters) via income growth outpacing house price growth and a further modest decline in interest rates.

We expect annual house price growth to remain broadly in the 2 to 4% range next year.

“The changes to property taxes announced in the Budget are unlikely to have a significant impact on the market. The high value council tax surcharge is not being introduced until April 2028 and will apply to less than 1% of properties in England and around 3% in London.

The increase in taxes on income from properties may dampen buy-to-let activity further and hold down the supply of new rental properties coming onto the market, which could in turn maintain some upward pressure on private rental growth.”