How Much Do House Prices in the UK Fall, or Crash, In a Recession: 50 Years of Data Analysed. (2024)

How much do house prices in the UK fall, or crash, in a negative economic climate: 50 years of data, from 1970 to 2020, analysed.

Summary:

Keywords: impact of recession on prices of homes in the UK, how much can house prices crash in recession in the UK, how will recession impact prices of houses in the UK, will house prices crash in the UK, how will a bad economy impact property prices in the UK.

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Every new buyer and homeowner has this concern. . . how much can the house prices crash in a recession in the UK? With the memories of the 2008 financial crisis still vivid in our minds, combined with the pessimism that 2020 carried with the pandemic, people have naturally developed 'anxiousness' regarding all aspects of their financial health.

Alternatively, national and international investors with real estate holdings as part of their portfolio also have this concern. If the economy's recessionary condition persists, or if there is another lagging-conditional recession in the next 4-6 years (which, of course, is likely), how much can house prices crash in the UK? An accurate assessment can be a critical aid in devising hedging strategies and formulating remedial actions.

Many 'gurus' give predictions regarding what can happen; however, any 'assessment' that is not based on data and modelling is . . . well . . . worthless. This report utilizes 5 decades of data to understand this issue with precision for definitive answers.

Data from the Bank of England is used in this report for an in-depth examination. All data and calculations are available at the end of the report.

The final derived value of the analysis is also adjusted for the per-period inflation rate to derive the real value, i.e., the Impact of the recession, in real terms, in addition to the nominal Impact.

So, what does the data reveal?

Examination of the last 6 recessions (1970-2020) reveals that, on average, the recession impacts house prices by -9.22% (adjusted for the rate of inflation per recessionary period (Link)), and the nominal price of homes appreciated by 1.26%. Furthermore, in real terms, other than the 2020 distress period, housing prices were negatively impacted in all other recessions in the data set.

What about future recessions? How much can we expect house prices to crash/decline in the next recession?

Confidence interval for the mean Impact of recessions has been calculated to examine how future recessions may impact house prices

(Real Impact):

Mean confidence interval: [-20.36%, 1.92%].alternatively: -9.22% ± 11.14%

Since the population's σ is not known the formula uses the T distribution with n-1 degrees of freedom:

X ± T(1-α/2)(df)S/√n.

-9.2189709 ± T(1-0.020/2)(5)⋅8.1066374/√6

(nominal Impact): Mean confidence interval: [-6.97 , 9.48].alternatively: 1.2551957 ± 8.22

Since the population's σ is not known the formula uses the T distribution with n-1 degrees of freedom:

X ± T(1-α/2)(df)S/√n.

1.2551957 ± T(1-0.020/2)(5)⋅5.9866298/√6

If you would calculate the confidence interval over an infinite number of samples with a sample size of 6, 98% of the calculated confidence intervals will contain the mean's true value.

We can state with 98% confidence that the next recession's actual impact, as per the examination of previous 6 recessions, is likely to be between -20.4% to 1.92% in real terms, adjusted for the long-term inflation rate, or between -7% to 9% in nominal terms.

The real figure is more important to remember in this scenario; this, simplistically, means that in a recession, for every £100,000 in equity in a house, as per the data of last 6 recessions, a homeowner or investor is at risk of losing a real value of £20,400, in the worst-case.

So, how much money am I risking by buying a new home or holding property? How much can the price of a house decline in the UK, after you buy, especially in a recession?

A value at risk (VaR) analysis that measures how an asset's value is likely to decrease in a specific period is implemented for definitive answers. Using a 95% confidence interval, the VaR is calculated as: z = (x-µ)/σ

X= (-1.65 × 8.11) + 100 = 86.6.

Simplistically, this means that for every £100,000 in equity in a house, we can state with 95% confidence, as per our assessment of the past 6 recessionary periods, that the losses should not exceed £13,400 or 13.4%; The upper limit of losses, in the worst-case scenario, should be around 20.4% (as explained in the previous paragraph). Thus, we can say confidently that, in the UK, in a recession, the worst-case an investor, homeowner, or buyer should prepare for is maximum losses of -21%, or £21,000 per every £100,000 of real estate value.

Nonetheless, it should be noted that these are the most likely values, and, of course, there is always a possibility of a one-off idiosyncratic event being much worse. It is also important to note that this analysis encompasses recessionary decline, and fluctuations of the property market, which are not related to recessionary periods are not included in this examination. However, in terms of recessionary decline, it is safe to say that losses greater than -21%, as per the analysis of the previous 6 recessions, are unlikely.

We cannot, and should not, make decisions based on 'anomalous happenings,' as there are infinite strange, aberrant events that can happen for better or for worse. A hedging or risk-mitigating strategy that equips an investor or homeowner with an appropriate response to handle a worst-case scenario of -21% decline in property prices should suffice.

How does a recession impact homeowners' wealth? Does a recession impact homeowners' wealth in the UK?

Each recessionary period in the UK, on average, can devalue a property by -9.22% in real terms, and this means about -£9,220 decline per £100,000 of real estate value. In nominal terms, the decline, in the worst-case, can be around -7%; this means a - £7,000 reduction in value per £100,000. The more recessionary periods the economy suffers, the lower the long-term growth rate of price appreciation.

For an average house price, of about £256,000, for example, a recessionary period would decline its value to about £233,000 in real-term; in the worst-case, the real value can decrease to about £204,000, of course, a very substantial decline of about £52,000, per average house price of £256,000.

These are very substantial figures that should alert all intelligent investors. For a portfolio of properties, this figure can amount to very damaging losses. Risk mitigation and strategizing are therefore of utmost importance.

As more recessionary periods are experienced, more value is eroded from long-term appreciation of a house, and the long-term growth, depending on the severity of the recession, can substantially decline an individual or investors wealth, as explained above (of course, proper hedging strategies would prevent the erosion of wealth).

For investment properties, it, therefore, makes more sense to explore hedging strategies, or the possibility of liquidating the property portfolio as leading economic indicators signal a cyclical turn in the business cycle; this is especially important in the late stages of the business cycle. Analysis reveals that during a 50-year holding period, constant severe recessions can deteriorate the value of the property by 75% in the long run, compared to no recessions during a holding period (see report for further understanding: (How much do house prices fall, or crash: 40 years of data analyzed.)

Every homeowner or investor should carefully understand and examine the risks before buying a new property or holding the existing property portfolio. It should also be noted that as concerns regarding a property bubble build, especially in the most in-demand areas, there is also a possibility of an idiosyncratic crash in the property prices. Nonetheless, those that have a solid risk-mitigation strategy for a possible -25% decline in property prices should weather the storm better than those that do not. Devising a risk mitigation strategy is also crucial as concerns of a price bubble bursting increase day by day.

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