According to the report from Nationwide Building Society, annual house price growth rose to a six-year high of 7.3% at the end of 2020. Economists had expected a 6.7% increase.

Prices up 0.8% month-on-month, after taking account of seasonal factors. Economists had expected a 0.4% increase.

All regions saw a pickup in house price growth rates in Q4, with East Midlands the strongest region.

Commenting on the figures, Robert Gardner, Nationwide's Chief Economist, said: “Annual house price growth accelerated further in December, reaching a six year high of 7.3%, up from 6.5% in the previous month. Prices rose by 0.8% month-on-month, after taking account of seasonal effects, following a 0.9% rise in November. House prices ended the year 5.3% above the level prevailing in March, when the pandemic struck the UK. The resilience seen in recent quarters seemed unlikely at the start of the pandemic. Indeed, housing market activity almost ground to a complete halt during the first lockdown as the wider economy shrank by an unprecedented 26%. But, since then, housing demand has been buoyed by a raft of policy measures and changing preferences in the wake of the pandemic".