08/03/2006

House prices continue to rise

House prices are continuing to rise, the Halifax Bank has reported.

The Halifax reported that house prices increased by 1.4% in February, pushing the annual rate of house price inflation to 5.5%.

The average house price in the UK is now £173,498, the Halifax said.

Commenting on the figures, Martin Ellis, Chief Economist, said: "The combination of improving economic growth, low interest rates and high employment will continue to underpin a healthy level of housing demand over the next few months."

However, Mr Ellis said that a number of factors should constrain housing demand and prevent a significant and sustained acceleration in house price inflation this year.

In separate research, the Halifax found that rising energy and council tax bills increased the cost of owning a home by 7% last year.

Mr Ellis said: "The continuing high level of house prices in relation to earnings will curb the ability of many potential first-time buyers to enter the market.

"Council tax and utility bills increase of well above inflation in 2006 will also put downward pressure on householders' finances.

"Additionally, the weakening in the labour market should temper housing demand."

(KMcA/GB)


Related UK National News Stories
Click here for the latest headlines.

07 September 2005
Halifax reports house prices rise
House prices rose by 1.6% in August, the UK’s biggest mortgage lender, has reported. However, the Halifax warned that the rise could be temporary, boosted by the recent interest rates cuts by the Bank of England. The price rise in August followed a modest 0.4% increase in July and was the biggest monthly rise since September 2004.
10 June 2008
House Prices Continue To Fall
The housing market is offering little comfort for homeowners as house prices continue to fall. For many with mortgages, the value that has been borrowed could be greater than the value of the property.
05 April 2005
House prices rise following March dip
House prices increased by 0.5% in March, the Halifax has reported, offsetting the 0.5% fall in February. There has been "virtually no change" in UK house prices since last September.
07 January 2005
Halifax announces surprise rise in house prices
The Halifax have announced that UK house prices rose by 1.1% in December, in spite of recent evidence which showed that the housing market in the UK is slowing down. The report concluded that there were "continuing signs of a genuine slowdown in the housing market". The Halifax stated that house prices in the final quarter of 2004 were only 0.
29 February 2008
January House Prices Show Slight Increase
House prices in England and Wales increased by just 0.9% in January, according to the latest monthly figures from Land Registry. The increase takes the average house price to £186,045. However, the data shows a decline in annual house price changes, from 6.7% last month to 6.4% this month. London experienced annual price growth of 13.