DATA: Nationwide reported UK house prices rose 1.0% in year to Jan 2026
This was slightly higher than the 0.6% reported for the previous month thanks to a seasonally adjusted monthly increase of 0.3%.
DATA: Halifax reported UK house prices rose 1.0% in year to Jan 2026
They report(PDF) the “Average property price is now £300,077, rising above £300k for the first time”. They also report “Regional differences in house price performance have become more pronounced” as “In the north, positive momentum has carried over from last year, with demand and inflation remaining robust” while “In contrast, southern regions have seen prices soften”.
DATA: BoE published quoted mortgage rate data for Jan 2026
The average quoted rate for five-year fixed-rate mortgages at 75% loan-to-value fell below 4% (3.95%) for the first time since September 2022 and the average revert-to-rate (standard variable) fell to 6.62%, its lowest level since January 2023.
DATA: Scottish Gov published households by tenure data for 2024
The Scottish Household Survey based data covers “households by tenure, characteristics of households by tenure, housing satisfaction by tenure and the number of households on social housing waiting lists”.
DATA: Scottish Gov published homelessness statistics for Apr-Sep 2025
They report “There were 20,643 applications for homelessness assistance. This is a decrease of 2% (468) compared with the same six-month period in 2024” and “There were 17,291 households assessed as homeless or threatened with homelessness; also a decrease of 2% (379) compared to 2024”.
DATA(PDF): NHBC published annual new home statistics review 2025
They report “115,350 new homes registered in 2025, 11% up on 2024 (103,669)” and “122,012 new homes completed in 2025, 2% down on 2024 (124,272)”. Do note that these figure significantly undercount new build activity, especially in urban markets.
DATA: MHCLG published new dwelling energy efficiency data for Q4 2025
“These statistics are estimates of new dwellings in England and those built to the Part L 2021 Standard, by: property type; type of heating systems; and key energy efficiency characteristics, for example heat pumps and solar photovoltaic (PV) panels”.
DATA: Financial Market Expectations For BoE’s Bank Rate
The chart provides a summary for the expected future level of Bank Rate based on daily data. The One Year figure was 3.39% on the 4th Feb compared to 3.41% on the 28th Jan.
DATA: New Build Energy Performance Certificates, England
This chart provides a summary of the number of EPCs on new build properties, a useful leading indicator for net additions. The 52-week rolling total was 209,904 for the week commencing 26th Jan, similar to the 209,929 total for the previous week.
POLICY: BoE MPC maintained Bank Rate at 3.75%
“At its meeting ending on 4 February 2026, the Monetary Policy Committee voted by a majority of 5–4 to maintain Bank Rate at 3.75%. Four members voted to reduce Bank Rate by 0.25 percentage points, to 3.5%.”
POLICY: MHCLG’s Cambridge development corporation consultation
“Focused on speeding up major development, assembling land, regenerating key sites and bringing in new investment, the Housing Minister today (Wednesday 4 February) has set out the blueprints for a government-established development corporation in Greater Cambridge”. The consultation is here.
POLICY: HMT published new Green Book
The Green Book promises to “support fairer and more balanced public investment decisions” by making “sure that investment decisions are no longer based solely on single metrics such as benefit-cost ratios, and that these metrics are not wrongly used to compare investment choices across different regions or between urban, rural and coastal communities”.
POLICY: Scottish Gov published Accelerating Home Building consultation
The consultation includes measures that “would help accelerate building on sites allocated for development or which have planning permission” and “include fiscal incentives to discourage delays and initiatives to fine tune the system to work better for SME housebuilders”.
POLICY: Welsh Gov announced £60m in funding for housing delivery
It “includes an indicative £50 million for the Transitional Accommodation Capital Programme (TACP) enabling the scheme to re-open for 2026-27” and “This comes alongside an additional £11 million in repayable finance that has been made available for the Land for Housing loan scheme this financial year”.
REPORT: BoE published Monetary Policy Report
They report “While further increases in effective mortgage rates are expected to continue to weigh on spending growth, waning effects of past monetary policy restrictiveness are expected to boost consumption growth overall in coming quarters”.
REPORT: BoE published Agents’ summary of business conditions
They report “Estate agents report marginally improved sentiment entering 2026, though there is still little evidence of a pickup in viewings or transactions. The market continues to favour buyers, with supply expected to exceed demand in the near term. Activity remains especially weak in Central London, where higher‑end prices fell sharply last year and remain under pressure, while regions outside the capital expect broadly flat to modest price growth. Rental market inflation continues to moderate, but landlord exits ahead of changes to renters’ rights in England may tighten supply and add to affordability pressures.”
REPORT: Centre for Cities reported on Croydon’s Suburban Design Guide
They report that from 2019 to 2022 “The borough introduced a ‘Suburban Design Guide’ (SDG) which provided clear guidance on allowable development on small sites” and “The effect of making the system more rules-based and less discretionary was the highest level of housebuilding on small sites seen in London since records began”.
REPORT: HBF reported on the energy efficiency of new build homes
They report “New homes, designed and delivered under increasingly robust building regulations such as Part L, Part S and the forthcoming Future Homes Standard, offer substantially lower energy use, reduced running costs, improved comfort and health outcomes, and significantly lower carbon emissions”.
CORPORATE: Grainger published Trading Update
They report “Rental growth and occupancy remain strong and have tracked in line with expectations and prior guidance” with private rented sector like-for-like rental growth year-to-date of 2.8% and occupancy on the 31st January of 96%.
Chart of the Week
I didn’t have room for a chart last week so this one’s based on Bank of England data from last Friday. It’s also of interest to me because my five-year fixed rate mortgage is ending in May and I wanted to see what mortgage products new borrowers were taking. The chart shows the distribution of new loans by rate type (fixed or variable) and fixed rate period.
Five-year fixed rate products had increased in popularity in the years leading up to 2022, hitting a peak of 60% in Q4 2022, but shorter fixed rate periods of two years or less have been the most popular product since then – with a short-term boom in variable rate mortgages in 2023-2024. Looking at the most recent data for Q4 2025 shows that, despite the prospect of falling interest rates, around one-third of borrowers are still taking out a five-year fixed rate mortgage. However, this might reflect the potential to borrow more due to greater flexibility around stress-testing for fixed rate periods of five years or more.
