House price growth edges up to 1.2% | Atom bank comment

22 April 2026

Chris Storey, Chief Commercial Officer, Atom bank:

“This data represents the calm before the storm, as it predates the conflict in the Middle East and the resulting turbulence. Future data from the ONS will reveal the true impact of the conflict on house prices, and whether it has acted as a brake on the growth seen this month. Thankfully, things are beginning to settle, with Moneyfacts last week reporting the first drop in mortgage rates since the start of the war in Iran, good news for aspiring buyers.

“Those would-be buyers should steel themselves for a painfully slow journey, however. The latest data from Propertymark shows 43% of transactions taking 17 weeks to reach completion, the highest proportion since it started tracking the data in 2015. It’s extraordinary that the housebuying process still takes so long, creating stress for all involved. As an industry, we must continue to look for ways to streamline that process, providing greater peace of mind to brokers and their customers.”