Cost of Owning a Home Falls Significantly

07/07/2009

The cost of owning and running a home in the UK has fallen by nearly a fifth over the past year, according to new research by Halifax.  Between April 2008 and April 2009, the average annual cost of housing fell from £8,766 to £7,298, a decline of 17% (£1,468).

Housing costs currently account for 23% of average UK full time earnings, down from 28% in 2008.  The expense of owning and running a home is at its lowest since 2006.

The significant fall in housing expenses over the past year was driven by 47% decline in mortgage interest payments.  The average mortgage rate fell to 3.62% in April 2009 from 5.08% a year earlier.

Suren Thiru, economist at Halifax, commented, "With mortgage interest payments declining by almost half over the past year, the annual cost associated with owning and running a home in the UK has fallen significantly.  Such a sizeable drop in the costs of running a home will help to ease the pressure on household disposable income, providing some welcome relief to homeowners."

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