To mark the start of a new decade, the Halifax has released a report looking at the UK housing market over the last 50 years – a time of rapid and significant social change.

The report’s findings are fascinating – and possibly depressing for relocatees planning to buy a new home, one of them being that the average UK house price has increased from £2,507 in 1959 to £162,085 in 2009!  

Key findings:

House prices

• The average UK house price has increased by 273% since 1959 in real terms (i.e. after allowing for retail price inflation), at an average annual rate of 2.7%. This is faster than the 2% per annum average rise in real earnings over the period
• House prices recorded their biggest increase in the latest decade, with a real rise of 62% during the 2000s – marginally ahead of the 61% increase in the 1980s. The worst-performing decade for house prices was the 1990s, when prices fell by 22% in real terms
• Pronounced cycles have been a key feature of the housing market since 1959.  There have been four distinct periods of rapid real house-price growth: 1971–73, 1977-–80, 1985–89 and 1998–2007. Each of these periods was followed by a significant fall in real house prices

Rise of owner-occupation

• Owner-occupation in the UK has increased by 25 percentage points, from 43% in 1961 to 68% in 2008. The biggest rise occurred in the 1980s, following the introduction of the Right to Buy scheme
• The proportion of homes that is privately rented has fallen significantly, from 33% in 1961 to 14% in 2008. The private rental sector was bigger than both the owner-occupied and social rented sectors until the mid-1950s. There has been a more recent increase in the private rented sector, from 9% in 1991 to 14% in 2008

Social trends

• The proportion of single-person households in England has risen significantly, from fewer than one in five (19%) households in 1971 to one in three (33%) in 2009. The proportion of English households occupied by married couples has declined, from 70% in 1971 to 42% in 2009, although married households are still the most common form of household. The number of households occupied by cohabiting couples increased from 1% in 1971 to 11% in 2009
• The number of houses built in the UK was an estimated 156,816 in 2009; 44% fewer than the 281,570 built in 1959. House building reached record levels during the 1960s, with a peak of 425,800 units completed in 1968. Private-sector completions (226,100) also reached a record in that year. The decline in house building has been driven by a fall in public sector completions
• There has been a marked shift in the type of properties built over the past 50 years. Semi-detached properties account for the largest proportion of the current English housing stock built between 1945 and 1964 (41%). Detached homes represent just 10% of the housing stock that was constructed during this period. In contrast, detached properties account for more than a third (36%) of the English housing stock built after 1980 – more than any other property type. Semis account for 15% of the post-1980 housing stock

Commenting on the report’s findings, Martin Ellis, housing economist at Halifax, said, "The last 50 years have witnessed some remarkable developments in the UK housing market. There has been a significant shift towards owner-occupation, with the majority of households now living in their own homes rather than renting.  There have also been substantial changes in both the number of households and their composition; the typical UK household now is very different to 50 years ago.  

“Levels of housebuilding have fallen sharply over recent decades, led by a reduction in building by the public sector. At the same time, the types of homes built have altered greatly both in terms of type and amenities. No doubt, there will be further dramatic changes over the coming years, most likely including ways that we are currently unable to foresee."