Press Round Up January 2026

Tue 10 Feb 2026

Will house prices rise in 2026? The Daily Mail asked a panel of six experts, including Jeremy Leaf, principal of Jeremy Leaf & Co Leaf, who said: “We expect a two-tier market with a more noticeable north/south divide to develop in early new year as part of a relief rally. Many of those with properties in the £500k-plus price bracket – so much of London and the southeast – were so happy that the Chancellor did not impose further taxes. As a result, demand is likely to improve in early 2026, especially if supported by sooner-rather-than-later cuts in base rate. On the other hand, prices will be kept in check by plenty of choice and continuing affordability constraints.”

Bearing this in mind, will 2026 be the year to buy a home? Referencing the hiatus created by the budget towards the end of 2025, Jeremy Leaf told The Standard: “Our view is often that the bigger the pause, the more substantial the rebound. That said, we don’t expect to see any great increase in house prices because there is still plenty of stock available in most price ranges and continuing underlying concerns about the strength of the economy generally."

House prices ended 2025 on average 0.6 per cent higher than the previous year, according to Nationwide Building Society. Jeremy Leaf told This is Money that this was partly down to the “huge uncertainty surrounding the contents of the budget which prevailed in the final quarter of last year”.

Meanwhile, Halifax reported a six-month low in house prices in December. Jeremy Leaf told The Independent: “Prices may have slipped a little while some caution remains but since returning after the break we have noticed in our offices how recent falls in interest rates and inflation have started to improve buyer and seller confidence.”

The more dated house-price index from the Office for National Statistics reveals that prices increased by 2.5 per cent in the year to November. Jeremy Leaf told Forbes: “Looking forward, the amount of property for sale – particularly flats – and likely slower pace of Bank Rate reductions, particularly given the latest inflation news, as well as some employment nervousness, means no significant price rises are likely for the time being at least.”

Surveyors are pretty upbeat about the prospects for the housing market this year, although there are concerns about landlords selling up due to worries about the Renters’ Rights Act. Commenting on the latest report from the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors, Jeremy Leaf told The Financial Times: “Some aspiring first-time buyers were awaiting the outcome of the Budget before taking the plunge."

Meanwhile, asking prices also saw a new year bounce, according to portal Rightmove. Commenting in The Guardian, Jeremy Leaf said: “Although the Rightmove survey looks at asking rather than selling prices of newly-listed homes, activity is definitely on the up, buoyed by falling mortgage rates and inflation.” He added that buyers and sellers “breathed a collective sigh of relief” when property tax changes in the budget turned out to be “not as punitive as many expected”.

What does it mean if a house has ‘good bones’? Jeremy Leaf explained in House Beautiful: “A sound and water-tight roof and no signs of serious movement are key elements we would be looking for when conducting a survey... Try not to be dazzled by the finishes, most notably in the kitchen or bathroom, or the decor. Try to look beyond that and think about how the property started life and what was there before. Kitchens and bathrooms can be easily replaced but foundations? Not so much.”