London house prices rose at their weakest rate in five years in the second quarter, with annual price growth dropping to just 1.2 percent between April and June.
House price growth in the capital fell behind the rest of the UK to grow at their slowest pace since 2012, with the 1.2 percent figure recorded a significant drop on the 5 percent growth seen in the previous quarter.
The data, from the latest report by Nationwide Building Society, also showed a narrowing in the gap between the strongest-performing parts of the UK and the weakest. The difference now stands at just four percentage points, and represents the smallest figure since records started in the mid-1970s.
“There has been a shift in regional house price trends,” said Robert Gardner, Nationwide’s chief economist.
“Price growth in the south of England has moderated, converging with the rates prevailing in the rest of the country.”
House price growth was strongest in East Anglia in the second quarter, up 5 percent year-on-year, followed by the South West at 4.4 percent, and the North West of England and the East Midlands with 4.1 percent. The weakest growth was seen in the North East of England, with a 1.1 percent increase, followed by London at 1.2 percent.