According to Halifax, the value of the UK’s private housing stock rose by an estimated 9% in 2007 to reach £4 trillion.

That figure has trebled over the last decade, rising by 208% from £1.3 trillion recorded in 1997. In contrast, the headline rate of inflation (RPI) has increased by over 31% over the same period. Despite fears about slowing UK property prices, the bank said that housing stock is worth more than three times the country’s outstanding mortgage debt. It said housing assets have grown by more than mortgage debt levels in every year since 1995.

At the same time, the amount of equity held by homeowners - the value of housing assets minus outstanding mortgage balances - has also risen sharply, with an average annual increase of £185bn over the past five years.
Halifax calculated that booming house prices meant overall household wealth has more than doubled in the last decade, rising from £3.3 trillion in 1997 to £6.7 trillion in 2007.