The Pulse of Your Pocketbook, September 2026 Inflation & Affordability Update
Imagine for a second that you’ve just finished the weekly shop at the supermarket. As you push your trolley towards the car, you notice something strange: the bags feel exactly the same weight as they did last year, but the receipt in your hand is just a little bit longer.
That, in its simplest form, is inflation. It is the "stealth tax" on your life, where the pound in your pocket loses its muscle. When we say the CPI Annual Inflation Rate is currently 3.1%, we mean that a basket of goods that cost you £100 this time last year now costs £103.10. Whether it’s the price of a tin of beans, a litre of petrol, or a haircut, your money has to work 3.1% harder just to stand still.
However, there is a silver lining in the cloud this September.
The Tug-of-War: Wages vs. Prices
While prices are climbing by 3.1%, the money landing in your bank account is growing faster. Average earnings have seen an annual growth of 4%.
Think of it like a race. If the cost of living is a runner moving at 3.1mph, and your wages are a runner moving at 4mph, you are slowly but surely gaining ground. This creates what we call positive real wage growth of 0.9%. You aren't just treading water anymore; you are actually beginning to move forward. After a long period of feeling the squeeze, that extra 0.9% is your "affordability signal"—a sign that consumers’ purchasing power is finally, gradually, improving.
What This Means for Your Home
For anyone looking to move, buy their first home, or remortgage, this is a vital turning point.
With the Bank of England Base Rate holding steady at 3.75%, the cost of borrowing hasn't spiked, yet your ability to pay that mortgage is getting stronger because your wages are outperforming the cost of the weekly shop. We are seeing this reflected in the numbers: property approvals have held firm at 58,200 this month, showing that people are feeling confident enough to make their move.
While average house prices nationally have nudged up to £287,949 (a modest 1.8% annual rise), the fact that your wages are rising faster than both inflation and house prices means the "affordability gap" is starting to narrow.
Bringing it Home to CM6 / CM6
National trends are the weather, but your local market is the micro-climate. In null, we see these national shifts play out in a very specific way.
Because we are currently in a buyer’s market with 440 properties for sale, that extra 0.9% in real spending power gives local buyers a bit more "wiggle room" during negotiations. With local average asking prices sitting at £556,360, having that extra bit of monthly income makes the jump to a larger family home in the null area feel significantly more achievable. For landlords and tenants, the 3.1% inflation rate acts as a benchmark, but the real story is that people in our community have slightly more breathing room in their budgets than they did six months ago.
The road ahead looks brighter. As your earnings continue to outpace the rising cost of living, the dream of that next move moves from "maybe one day" to "let's book a viewing."