The latest Zoopla Housing Market Sentiment Survey has reported that homeowner confidence in the continued growth of UK house prices has fallen to a 15-month low.
The firm’s survey of 6,746 homeowners found that the proportion of homeowners expecting property prices in their area to increase over the next six months has fallen from 92% three months ago to 88%, the lowest level since July 2013.
The survey revealed that homeowners in the East of England are the most bullish about continued house price rises, with 91% expecting property values to increase over the next six months.
The South West has seen the most significant drop in confidence over the past three months, with the proportion of homeowners anticipating further price gains falling from 95% three months ago to 85% today.
Following the implementation of stricter affordability criteria for borrowing, 39% of those homeowners surveyed stated that they thought it was more difficult to get a mortgage now than it was three months ago.
Lawrence Hall of Zoopla.co.uk said: “The property market signals are somewhat harder to decipher at the moment than they were a few months ago.
“With the lengthier funding approval process following the Mortgage Market Review and fewer homeowners predicting that house prices will continue to rise in the short term, the coming months will be crucial to determine if the housing market recovery has stalled or simply paused for breath.”