The average UK house price has hit a new record in September, pushing over £225,000 for the first time.
More, the report from Nationwide Building Society showed house prices increased by 5% annually in September, marking the highest growth rate since September 2016.
But before anyone starts getting carried away with the prospect of soaring values, the report came with a warning too.
Explaining what was driving sales and values up, Nationwide's chief economist Robert Gardner pointed to three factors.
"Pent-up demand is coming through, with decisions taken to move before lockdown now progressing," he said.
"The stamp duty holiday is adding to momentum by bringing purchases forward. Behavioural shifts may also be boosting activity as people reassess their housing needs and preferences as a result of life in lockdown."
The problem for property market optimists is that every one of those things is temporary.
Worse, outside of those one-off effects, things don't look too rosy.
Ross Counsell, chartered surveyor and director at Good Move, said: “Whilst the latest statistics are positive, the medium-term outlook for the UK housing market remains uncertain.
"With rising unemployment figures and the end of the furlough scheme on the horizon, the future of the property market will depend solely on how the wider economy performs."
However, the wider economy isn't looking good. Job losses, firms closing, recession, millions of people seeing salaries cut and entire industries gutted by Covid-19 restrictions for what looks like at least six more months.
Jonathan Hopper, chief executive of Garrington Property Finders, said: “While buying a home is purchase unlike any other, and buyers’ motivations are multi-layered, the booming market cannot defy economic reality for long.”
And that's before we get to the other looming threat to the property market.
Sam Mitchell, chief executive of online estate agent Strike, said: “We can’t ignore the elephant in the room.
"The possibility of another large-scale lockdown and what this could mean to movers is at the forefront of our minds."
