The latest research by Halifax has found that privately owned housing stock in the UK has soared in value by £1.9 trillion (or 51%) to over £5.5 trillion in the last ten years.
The average value per household in the UK now stands at £241,682, up from £173,837 in 2006 – representing an increase of £67,845.
This increase has been driven by a 51% rise in the average house price and the stock of privately owned homes expanding by 1.8 million, from 21.3m to 23.1m.
More than half of this rise is accounted for by London and the South East. Since 2006 the average house price in the capital has almost doubled whilst the stock of private dwellings has grown by a quarter of a million.
The north-south gap has widened further since 2006.The value of housing in southern England has increased two and half times faster than in the north – 70% compared to 27% - over the past decade. As a result, the South's share of total UK housing assets rose from 55% in 2006 to 62% in 2016.
UK housing equity remains strong with total mortgage debt a quarter of total housing value. Total mortgage debt has risen by 25% since 2006 from £1.1 trillion to £1.3 trillion. However the value of the private housing stock has increased by over seven times as much; £1.9 trillion compared with the £264 billion rise in mortgage debt. As a result, housing equity has increased by £1.6 trillion over the decade from £2.6 trillion in 2006 to £4.3 trillion.
Martin Ellis, housing economist at Halifax, said: “The combined value of all privately owned houses in the UK is estimated at £5.6 trillion in 2016 – the highest on record. A combination of higher house prices and an increase in the number of privately owned homes has seen the value of housing stock grow by £1.9 trillion in the past decade.
Overall housing equity held by UK households is in a healthy state, with total housing assets worth over £4.2 trillion more than the value of mortgage debt. Housing equity has grown by £1.6 trillion since 2006. For almost one in three homeowners – who own their home with no outstanding mortgage debt – their financial position is even stronger.”
