Housing market to soften amid Iran war fallout, Nationwide says

Housing market to soften amid Iran war fallout, Nationwide says 13 minutes ago Share Save Nick Edser Business reporter Share Save The UK's housing market is likely to soften as households face rising mortgage and energy costs due to the impact of the Iran war, Nationwide has said. The bank's comments came as it reported a jump in house prices for March, up by 0.9%, saying the market "had regained momentum" during the month. However, Nationwide said the surge in energy prices sparked by the Middle East conflict was a "significant shock to the global economy, clouding the outlook". Expectations interest rates will rise have caused lenders to push up mortgage rates and pull hundreds of mortgage products over the past few weeks. Nationwide's figures showed March's increase took the average cost of a property to £277,186. Annual price growth jumped to 2.2%, up from 1% in February. But the building society warned the market will take a hit in the event of a prolonged conflict in the Middle East. Mortgage rates have been rising sharply due to a dramatic change in expectations over the future direction of interest rates. Before the war began, the Bank of England had been expected to cut rates twice this year. However, the surge in energy prices means financial markets are now expecting the Bank to raise rates to counter any rise in inflation. This change in expectations has led lenders to raise their mortgage rates. …