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Tower Hamlets house prices are falling faster than anywhere else in England

The value of property in the East End area is dropping more rapidly than other parts of the capital, which is seeing its slowest growth in almost five years according to the UK House Price Index.

Jon Massey

By Jon Massey

Written by Pippa Allen-Kinross for The Wharf

House prices in Tower Hamlets have fallen faster than anywhere else in England over the last year, according to the latest statistics.

Between February 2016 and February 2017 the average house price in the borough fell by 2.9%, from £460,405 to £446,875.

Although house prices across England rose by an average of 6.3% last year, the housing market in London has started to slow according to the UK House Price Index, calculated with Land Registry data.

Since February 2016, the capital’s property market has experienced its slowest rise for nearly five years, with an average annual increase of just 3.7%.

London house prices actually slumped at the beginning of 2017, with a fall in value of 0.9% between January and February.

The decrease in value of Tower Hamlets homes may come as a surprise to some, after the previous HPI statistics showed an increase of 2.6% in the typical price of a house in the borough between January 2016 and January 2017.

The nearby boroughs of Bexley, Greenwich, Lewisham, Newham and Southwark have all experienced rises in in the year to February 2017.

In September last year, property consultancy Propcision warned house prices in Tower Hamlets could fall due to the speed of development in the borough and possible fall-out from Brexit.

However, Emoov.co.uk founder and chief executive Russell Quirk said the latest figures were nothing to worry about.

He said: “Although many have been quick to attribute a slowdown in the market to fears of Article 50 and buyer uncertainty, the latest data from the Land Registry would suggest a more natural adjustment is currently happening to the market.

“Prices across the board have generally continued an upward trend despite a slower start to the year than usual, but it is no coincidence that both London and the South East have seen some of the only falls in monthly property price growth.

“Both have considerably higher average house prices than the rest of the UK and what we are currently seeing is the property market in these areas realigning itself with the rest of the country, having seen an abnormal level of inflation over the last year.

“As these markets pause to catch their breath, it is inevitable that the result will be a downward movement in price growth.

“But as we approach the peak time of year for both home-buyers and sellers it is likely that this brief respite will soon subside and price growth across the whole of the UK will remain buoyant.”