Nationwide: House prices down 0.6% in August
Thursday, 01 September 2011 08:59
House prices in Britain fell in August at the fastest rate since October last year, new figures from Nationwide have shown.
The building society said property values fell 0.6 per cent in August, following an increase of 0.3 per cent in July.
Homes in the UK are now worth an average of £165,914, down 0.4 per cent compared with a year ago, it added.
Robert Gardner, Nationwide's chief economist suggested that "sluggish" demand combined with a modest rise in the supply of available properties has helped to keep property prices relatively stable.
"We expect this trend to be maintained over the remainder of 2011, although downside risks have increased as UK and global growth prospects have weakened," he added.
Howard Archer, chief UK economist at IHS Global Insight, said the figures tied in with his view that house prices are likely to trend down gradually over the coming months as a result of weak economic activity, low consumer confidence and rising unemployment.
"We suspect that squeezed household purchasing power, tightening fiscal policy, a weakening labour market and persistent serious consumer concern over the economic outlook will limit potential buyers and weigh down on house prices," he added.
Meanwhile, Matt Hutchinson, director of flat and house share website Spareroom.co.uk, said the figures for August cancel out those for July, making the overall picture "mildly fickle but ultimately flat".
"Buyers seemingly have little appetite to purchase unless they find sellers willing or able to drop their prices. The problem is many sellers simply aren't in a position to drop their prices, so we enter the limbo we're currently in," he commented.
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