In its latest housing market analysis, the lender said that during the 2000s, prices experienced their biggest rise, increasing by 62%. The worst performing decade was the 1990s when prices fell by 22%.
Halifax said that there have been four distinct periods of rapid real house price growth, which were 1971-73, 1977-80, 1985-89 and 1998-2007 and each period was followed by a significant fall in real house prices.
There has been a steady rise in owner-occupation rates since 1959, which have increased by 25% from 43% in 1961 to 68% in 2008 following the introduction of the Right to Buy scheme. Due to the increase, the proportion of homes which were privately rented fell from 33% in 1961 to 14% in 2008.
However, there has been a more recent increase in the private rented sector from 9% in 1991 to 14% in 2008.
The size of the socially rented sector in 2008 at 18% was smaller than in 1961 at 25% as a sharp reduction in local authority house building and the sale of council houses contributed to the sector’s contraction since the early 1980s.
The North/South house price divide has widened since 1969 as prices have increased more quickly in the South. The average percentage difference between the highest and lowest priced UK region has increased from 84% in 1959 to 104% in 2009.
Martin Ellis, housing economist at Halifax, said all the developments in the UK housing market over the last 50 years were remarkable.
He added: “No doubt, there will be further dramatic changes over the coming years, most likely including ways that we are currently unable to foresee.”
