House prices ‘grind to a halt’ as London prime property hit

House prices in London’s most sought-after areas continued to plummet in August as confidence across the country’s housing market slumped on the back of rising mortgage rates brought on by the Iran war. Areas at the centre of the capital’s prime property market shed value in August as house prices across the capital slipped by 2.2 per cent year on year, according to the Office for National Statistics. In Westminster, which covers sought-after postcodes like Belgravia, Mayfair and Maida Vale, the average house price slipped by 14.3 per cent in August, to £887,000. House prices slumped by 13.8 per cent to £1.2m in Kensington and Chelsea in the year to August, and by 10.6 per cent to £798,000 in Camden. London’s luxury property has shed value in recent months, as prospective house sellers in this sector of the market bear the brunt of sky-high stamp duty and council tax costs. Soaring mortgage rates caused by the Iran war have begun to knock house prices across the country