Monthly house price growth at 17-year high in April: Nationwide By Rebekah Commane 30 th April 2021 9:33 am House prices rose 2.1% in the month to April, the biggest monthly rise since February 2004, the latest Nationwide House Price Index has revealed. Annually, house prices also increased, climbing 7.1% in the year to April, up from an annual rise of 5.7% seen in March. The average house price in the UK is currently £238,831, up £15,916 in the last 12 months. The index states that annual growth will reach double digits in June, if prices are flat in the next two months. Nationwide’s chief economist Robert Gardner says: “In month-on-month terms, house prices rose by 2.1% in April, after taking account of seasonal effects, the biggest month rise since February 2004. Just as expectations of the end of the stamp duty holiday led to a slowdown in house price growth in March, so the extension of the stamp duty holiday in the Budget prompted a reacceleration in April. “However, our research suggests that while the stamp duty holiday is impacting the timing of housing transactions, for most people it is not the key motivating factor prompting them to move in the first place.