House prices rise, but at the slowest rate since 1996, says Land Registry |
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Tue, 08 Nov 2005 16:05
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LONDON: U.K.'s Land Registry said house prices rose 3.52 per cent during the quarter July-September compared with the corresponding previous year quarter, the slowest in nine years during the third quarter. In the second quarter the prices rose by 5.43 per cent.
The data, based on actual sales completions, also showed that the number of houses sold in the quarter fell by an annual 15.41 per cent to 261,481.
These figures are in contrast to findings by independent organisations. Mortgage lender Halifax, for example, had announced last week that the annual house price inflation was at its highest in October.
According to the Land Registry, the average house price in England and Wales was 194,589 pounds in the third quarter. It also found that the highest annual gain was in Wales, where average prices rose 7.42 per cent compared with Q3 last year to 145,188 pounds. The lowest recorded was in south-west England, 0.54 per cent to 202,249 pounds. In London, prices increased by 4.5 per cent to reach an average of 300,329 pounds. The highest fall in prices was recorded at Wrekin, 6.3 per cent.
Experts feel that the upturn in housing activity may continue albeit at a slow pace. Milan Khatri, chief economist at the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors said the upturn will be sustained, supported by steady growth in the number of jobs and incomes. However, a renewed housing market boom is not likely as there is no indication of any further interest rate cuts.
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House price inflation rate down, is the market stagnated? 