Through a year of extremely low interest rates, continued shortage of housing available for purchase, and struggling wage growth, housing experts are concluding several different opinions about the market. One consistent opinion which keeps emerging is that housing prices fell due to many reasons, but overall the market is strong. London housing prices fell during 2017 for the first time in eight years, but overall the UK saw an increase in house prices by 2.6% according to Nationwide.

Affordability was the main factor in house price growth for the capital city. Many households were constantly battling inflation, rising petrol costs, and being priced out of the market from years of increasing house prices. The increase in prices left many challenged to put together enough for a down payment.

Robert Gardner, Nationwide economist, commented on the latest data, saying: “In London and the south-east, affordability has become even more challenging, with more people priced out of the market or needing to borrow a greater multiple of their income.”

For those house owners looking for an option to moving home last year, remortgage offered an attractive choice. Low interest rates combined with a competitive batch of high profile lenders made it possible to find a favourable deal at every turn. Many house owners were able to save hundreds off the cost of their current monthly mortgage payment.

Many housing experts are not able to commit to forecasts for this year until more is released regarding Brexit negotiations. The remortgage sector however is expected to see strong activity for much of this year.