UK HPI for May 2026 published showing 2.7% annual house price growth

The UK House Price Index for May 2026, published by HM Land Registry on 22 July 2026, shows average UK house prices rose 0.3% between April and May 2026 and 2.7% over the year, taking the average property value to £271,000¹. The annual rate is down from a revised estimate of 3.9% in the 12 months to April 2026¹. The UK House Price Index is based on completed housing transactions, which typically take six to eight weeks to reach completion¹.

In England, prices rose 0.1% month on month and 2.3% annually, giving an average property value of £292,000¹. The North West recorded the largest monthly increase at 1.4%, while London saw the biggest monthly fall at -1.2%¹. The North East had the highest annual growth at 5.9%; London had the lowest, at -1.2%¹.

Region	Average price May 2026	Annual change	Monthly change
East Midlands	£241,000	3.2%	-0.4%
East of England	£338,000	2.3%	0.3%
London	£545,000	-3.7%	-1.2%
North East	£164,000	5.9%	0.6%
North West	£220,000	5.8%	1.4%
South East	£381,000	1.2%	0.8%
South West	£303,000	1.7%	-0.3%
West Midlands	£248,000	2.7%	-0.9%
Yorkshire and the Humber	£209,000	4.3%	4.3%

Source: UK HPI, May 2026¹

Wales recorded a 1.3% monthly rise and a 4.2% annual increase, taking the average property value to £215,000¹. In England, detached homes averaged £474,000 (up 2.5% annually), semi-detached £291,000 (up 4.1%), terraced £244,000 (up 3.2%) and flats or maisonettes £217,000 (down 2.2%)¹. First-time buyer properties in England averaged £244,000, up 2.3% on the year¹.

HM Land Registry said two changes affect how the figures are read:

"We are not publishing average price and percentage change for new builds and existing resold property as done previously because there are not currently enough new build transactions to provide a reliable result."

The revision period has also been extended to 13 months, following a review of the revision policy¹. Estimated residential transactions of £40,000 or more in May 2026 were 98,000 on a seasonally adjusted basis, 16.6% higher than a year earlier but down 2% on April 2026¹.

Why it matters for households

The index is a lagging measure: it reflects sales completed in May 2026, so it describes prices agreed in roughly March and April¹. For anyone buying or selling now, the regional split matters more than the UK average. London is the only English region in the table showing an annual fall, at -3.7%, with the average property at £545,000, while the North East shows 5.9% annual growth from a £164,000 average¹. A seller in London and a seller in the North East are therefore facing different markets on the same day's data.

The withdrawal of new build and existing resold property figures means the split between newly built and previously owned homes is not available in this release, so households comparing a new build with an older property have no official May comparison from this index¹. The 13-month revision period means figures for recent months can change as more transactions are registered¹.