According to the lender Nationwide, there has been a 12.4% annual drop in prices and southern England has fared the worst. Nationwide’s chief economist, Fionnuala Earley has said that this downturn will last as long as the financial markets are in turmoil, and that it is difficult to forecast just how deep the drop in prices will be.

While southern England has suffered worse than the north, Northern Ireland showed the most marked decline in house prices across the UK, which are now 28.8% lower than they were a year ago.