{
  "id": 1373167,
  "title": "House prices suffer biggest August slump in eight years",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/16/house-prices-suffer-biggest-august-slump-in-eight-years",
  "topic": "business",
  "section": "Business",
  "published": "2026-08-16T23:01:00.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "City AM",
    "slug": "city-am",
    "url": "https://www.cityam.com/house-prices-suffer-biggest-august-slump-in-eight-years/"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "House prices in the UK experienced their largest decline in August since 2018, exacerbated by concerns over Budget tax increases, according to Rightmove, a property portal. The average house price plummeted by two percent to £364,999, marking the most significant year-on-year drop since December 2023. The capital's housing market remains the most adversely impacted, with London house prices declining by 3.1 percent in the year-to-date. House prices across southern England have decreased by 1.8 percent, while the north saw a 1.5 percent increase.\n\nRightmove has lowered its forecast for national house price growth to between zero and minus two percent, citing the uncertain geopolitical situation, evolving mortgage rate landscape, and the new Chancellor's first Budget on October as factors complicating forecasts for the rest of the year. Despite a record number of homes being available in London in the past 16 years, the average home price there is approximately 17 times the national average wage. Property expert Colleen Babcock highlighted that Londoners face more significant affordability challenges due to high stamp duty fees and high price-to-income ratios.\n\nThe national housing market has benefited from a \"mini Burnham bounce\" in recent weeks, attributed to Prime Minister Burnham's renewed optimism. However, this uplift could not counterbalance the slump in confidence as buyers and sellers anticipate potential reforms to property taxes at the October Budget. The political speculation, coupled with the ongoing impacts of the Iran war, which has led to higher-than-expected mortgage rates, is dampening demand and disproportionately affecting regions where affordability is already stretched.",
  "summary": "House prices in the UK have suffered their biggest August drop since 2018, as a usually quiet period for the property market is stifled further by fears of Budget tax rises. The average house price slumped by two per cent this month to £364,999, according to property portal Rightmove. House prices are down one per [...]",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}