St Albans property leads the pack in the East of England

Nov. 23, 2014 - PRLog -- Hertfordshire is one of the most coveted areas in the south east of England and this has been reflected in the latest Nationwide House Price Index, which revealed the results of property data collected and collated from the third quarter of 2014.

While Nationwide's Chief Economist said that the price of a typical house in the UK had risen by 1.5% in the third quarter of the year, there were five regional towns and cities that registered stellar house price performances. Interestingly for buyers of property for sale in Hertfordshire, St Albans was the best performing city, with uplift of 24% and a new average house price in the city of £479,497. St Albans ranked ahead of other major towns and cities across the country in terms of house price growth, piping London (22%), Cambridge (21%), Belfast (21%) and Reading (18%) to the top spot.

Outside of St Albans, there is good property news for the whole of the county. Winkworth Hertfordshire estate agents have keenly monitored the rhetoric from Bank of England Governor Mark Carney, whose Monetary Policy Committee make decisions on the country's rate of interest, and whose Financial Policy Committee (FPS) advises on mortgage lending.

The Bank has given the green light for the Government's Help to Buy mortgage scheme initiative to continue. It was feared this measure - designed to help purchasers with small deposits - was accelerating the housing market at an unsustainable rate but after analysing the figures, Mr Carney declared the scheme did not "pose material risks to financial stability."

The Bank of England has also formally asked the Government for more power so it can control the UK's property market. This is seen as a positive move as it adds a layer of protection for house buyers and owners, reducing their exposure risk to another property market crash, as seen in 2007/2008.

The FPC would like to limit how much money people can borrow to buy a house, according to their financial circumstances. Under an existing arrangement, the FPC can already make recommendations to lenders about loan amounts, particularly in regards to large sums where the income multiple is higher than average. However, new powers would see the FPC's recommendations turn into concrete directives that lenders would have to abide by.

While further lending restrictions for buyers of property for sale in Hertfordshire and across the UK sound repressive, especially in light of the recent mortgage market review, these steps are vital in maintaining a healthy equilibrium in property and avoiding a boom/bust scenario. Hertfordshire estate agents are also keen to point out that mortgage lending is currently free-flowing, with mortgage rates at their best for many years and approvals at very good levels, for all types of borrowers.

For more details , please visit Winkworth Hertfordshire estate agents (http://www.winkworth.co.uk/regions/east)