Annual house price growth in the United Kingdom came in at negative 3.1% in March, observing the largest year-on-year decline since July 2009, the Nationwide House Price Index said in its report issued on Friday.
On a monthly level, the figure declined by 0.8%, observing a decrease for the seventh month in a row. The average house price in the country landed at £257,122.
"The housing market reached a turning point last year as a result of the financial market turbulence which followed the mini-budget," Nationwide's Chief Economist Robert Gardner commented. "It will be hard for the market to regain much momentum in the near term since consumer confidence remains weak and household budgets remain under pressure from high inflation."
