UK statistics
Average UK House Price 2026: ONS House Price Index
The ONS House Price Index put the average UK house price at £270,000 in the 12 months to April 2026 - up 3.8%. Country split: England £290,000 (+0.8%), Wales £210,000 (+2.5%), Scotland £187,000 (+2.3%), Northern Ireland £198,000 (+7.4%). London is the only English region with falling prices (-2.1%); the North East is fastest rising at +9.9%.
Headline numbers
- Average UK house price
- £270,000
- Annual house price growth
- +3.8%
- London annual change
- -2.1%
ONS HPI April 2026
12m to April 2026
only English region falling
The detail
The ONS UK House Price Index for April 2026 put the average UK house price at £270,000, up 3.8% in the 12 months. Annual growth has accelerated modestly from the 2-3% range that dominated 2023-2024, but remains well below the 8-12% pandemic-era peaks.
Country breakdown: England £290,000 (+0.8%), Wales £210,000 (+2.5%), Scotland £187,000 (+2.3%), Northern Ireland £198,000 (+7.4% Quarter 1 2026 vs 2025). Northern Ireland leads on growth rate, partly because Belfast and Greater Belfast were lower-base markets that have caught up sharply post-pandemic.
English regional divergence is the headline story. The North East is the fastest-rising region at +9.9% annual growth (median terraced £155,000 → £170,000), driven by sub-£200k affordability attracting both first-time buyers and London-to-North migration. London is the only English region with negative growth at -2.1% annual - prices in central boroughs are bumping into post-stamp-duty-cut affordability limits even with 2025-26 rate cuts from the Bank of England.
Practical implication for buyers: the affordability gap between London and the rest of UK has narrowed materially. A £40,000-salary first-time buyer is locked out of London at the 4.5x LTI cap (max approximately £180,000 mortgage vs typical 1-bed flat £350,000+) but can comfortably target the North East median terraced at the same income level.
Sources
- ONS - Private rent and house prices, UK: May 2026 (retrieved 2026-06-21)
- gov.uk - UK House Price Index April 2026 (retrieved 2026-06-21)
- Our methodology & full source list →
Related statistics
- Average UK rent
The ONS Price Index of Private Rents (PIPR) put average UK monthly rent at £1,383 in May 2026 - up 3.3% in the year. Annual growth has cooled from the 8-9% peaks of 2023-24 but remains above CPI. England leads at £1,442, Wales £836, Scotland £1,009, Northern Ireland £876.
- Median Household Income
The median UK household has disposable income of £36,700 per year after tax and benefits, equivalised for household size (ONS, financial year ending 2024).
- Pension pot needed
The Pensions and Lifetime Savings Association (PLSA) Retirement Living Standards split single-person retirement income into Minimum (£14,400/yr), Moderate (£31,300/yr), and Comfortable (£43,100/yr) for 2026/27. Using the 4% safe withdrawal rule, the pension pots needed are roughly £469,000 for Moderate and £764,000 for Comfortable - on top of the new State Pension.