U.K. house prices increased the most in six years as widening supply and demand gap lifted asking prices in London, a survey conducted by Hometrack revealed Monday.
House prices in England and Wales advanced 0.4 percent in May from a month ago, which was the biggest increase since May 2007.
In London, prices surged 0.9 percent, followed by a 0.5 percent increase across the South-east. According to the property analysts, demand over the last six months increased 15 percent in London, while supply dropped 0.6 percent.
"The impetus for rising house prices is originating almost exclusively from London and the South East," Director of research at Hometrack, Richard Donnell said. "Elsewhere, housing market conditions are improving gradually."
A property market survey by Rightmove revealed on May 20 that house prices increased for the fifth consecutive month in May, pushing the average asking prices to a record. Cheap money and more positive mood released pent-up demand.
The 9.1 percent year-to-date increase was the strongest price start to a year since 2004, Rightmove said.
Recent house price data signals that the government's Help to Buy program as well as the Bank of England's Funding for Lending Scheme started to underpin recovery in the property market.
The recent Halifax survey also showed a revival in the residential property market helped by the low levels of mortgage payments in relation to income.
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Business News
May 22, 2026 14:46 ET Minutes of the latest Fed policy session was the highlight of the week along with survey data on the U.S. housing market. In Europe, survey data signaled the trends in the euro area private sector. Further, consumer price inflation data from the U.K. was in focus. In Asia, various economic indicators from China drew attention to the health of the economy.