The previous blog needs adjustment to take inflation into account during the 60 year period. Again with the assistance of ChatGPT the real changes after inflation for the three bedroom new small terraced house in Hurst Park West Molesey first sold to me in 1969 at an asking price of £6650 with a present day value of 100 times more is as follows.
1969 equivalent value £160,000; 1979 equivalent value, 222,000 showing an increase of 38.7%; 1989 equivalent value £355,000 showing 59.8% change; 1999 equivalent value 348,000 showing a decrease of 2.1%; 2009 equivalent value £550,000 a equivalent to a 58.2% increase; 2019 value 683,000 showing a 24.2% increase in value 2026 £700,000 showing a 2.5% increase in value.
Put another way, to quote ChatGPT, ‘the house is worth about 4.4 times times as much in real purchasing power terms as it was when new in 1969. That is a real increase of approximately 337% after allowing for inflation’.
In real money terms, a four fold increase in houses over 60 years, much of which happened before immigration was an issue, suggests the outlook for house price affordability in the next generation is uncertain. As one political party in one parliament cannot do much, will we see political parties recognise reality and start coming together to solve an acute and a chronic domestic problem?
Ian Campbell
20 September 2026 6
