29
Nov
UK HOUSE PRICES SUPRISINGLY RESILIENT
UK house prices surprisingly resilient, Nationwide says
The house price survey is based on the Nationwide's mortgage data
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UK house prices have remained "surprisingly resilient" in recent
months, with values rising again in November, the Nationwide has
said.
The building society said house prices rose by 0.4% in November
to £165,798.
This was a 1.6% year-on-year increase, according to the figures
based on Nationwide's own mortgage data.
This contrasts with figures from the Land Registry which showed
that prices in England and Wales had slipped slightly in the past
year.
The Nationwide predicted that prices would stay the same or fall
in the next 12 months.
"House prices have remained surprisingly resilient in recent
months, despite the deterioration in the economic outlook," said
Robert Gardner, the Nationwide's chief economist.
"But, with the UK economic recovery expected to remain sluggish
well into 2012, house price growth is likely to remain soft, with
prices moving sideways or drifting modestly lower over the next
twelve months."
Homes on the market
The best measure of current trends in house prices is to compare
the average price of the past three months with the average price
of the previous three months.
On the Nationwide's data this three-month on three-month
comparison shows a rise of 0.2%.
Mr Gardner said the apparent resilience of house prices
reflected a lack of supply in the market.
He welcomed the latest announcement from the government on
encouraging first-time buyer activity, but said that any action
should also include measures to increase housing supply.
The government's housing strategy, announced earlier in the
month, included a mortgage guarantee scheme to encourage lenders to
offer 95% mortgages to buyers of new homes.