House prices drop by 5 percent across the UK - what this means for buyers and sellers

House prices are on the decline across the UK as the property market shows signs of cooling down. Whilst property costs have been notably high over the last few years, the average price of a home has now dropped by more than five per cent over the last 12 months.

Nationwide's latest house price index has now revealed that growth remained weak in September. Although property prices were unchanged over the month, they were down 5.3 per cent since last year, knocking around £14,500 off the average price tag.

With all regions recording annual house price falls in the last quarter, the typical price of a UK home is now around £257,808, according to Nationwide. Commenting on the figures, Robert Gardner, Nationwide's chief economist, said that the 'housing market activity remains weak'.

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Robert explained: "Housing market activity remains weak, with just 45,400 mortgages approved for house purchase in August, 30 per cent below the monthly average prevailing in 2019 before the pandemic struck. This relatively subdued picture is not surprising given the more challenging picture for housing affordability.

“Nevertheless, with Bank Rate not expected to decline significantly in the years ahead, borrowing costs are unlikely to return to the historic lows seen in the aftermath of the pandemic. Instead, it appears more likely that a combination of solid income growth together with modestly lower house prices and mortgage rates will gradually improve affordability over time, with housing market activity remaining fairly subdued in the interim."

With house prices gradually lowering, what was