Helen Nugent

The UK housing market is in ‘neutral gear’

Mortgage Freedom Day. It has a nice ring to it, don’t you think? Just imagine: no mortgage. I wonder what that feels like.

According to Halifax, yesterday was UK Mortgage Freedom Day, the point in the calendar when new borrowers will have earned enough to pay off the annual cost of their mortgage. So not quite the mortgage-free day of joy, but good news nonetheless.

Halifax based its calculation on the average annual mortgage repayment cost of £7,968 and the average net annual income of £26,810. However, there is a wide variation in Mortgage Freedom Days across the country. Homeowners in Scotland celebrate March 14, followed by Northern Ireland on March 15 and then the North and Yorkshire and Humber on March 25.

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