House prices up 2.1% this year
Written by Chris Evans
House Prices
New figures show the average house price edged up 0.1 per cent in June and is up 2.1 per cent year on year to £158,900.
The annual rise is the largest since January 2008, but the research from property intelligence group Hometrack also showed house price growth slowed from 0.2 per cent in May.
Hometrack said that house prices rose in just 11 per cent of areas, down from 25 per cent in February, as demand from buyers stalled. For London, North West and East Anglia, June was the second month in a row that there had been a fall in new buyer demand. Across England and Wales over the past four months the supply of housing for sale has grown three times faster than demand.
The run up to the Election, pre-Budget talk of austerity measures and a continuing lack of mortgage finance have all contributed to market uncertainty. Meanwhile, speculation over changes to Capital Gains Tax and the abolition of Home Information Packs have been driving supply growth.
Richard Donnell, director of research at Hometrack, said: "We expect demand for housing to slow further as seasonal factors come into play and households consider the implications of the Budget on their finances and on the economy in general."
“In the coming months we expect market conditions to remain subdued with prices likely to track sideways at best, but with the distinct possibility of small month on month falls.”