UK house prices pushed up by London market

House prices across the UK rose by an average of 0.2 per cent, mainly boosted by London data which revealed a 0.6 per cent growth in prices, Hometrack said today.

The property market has also been affected by the ending of the stamp duty holiday on homes valued up to £250,000.

According to the property analysts, house prices in the South East and East Anglia grew by 0.1 per cent but in all other regions they actually remained either static or moved lower.

The number of new buyers registering with agents continued to slow over the month, up by just 0.4 per cent in May, compared with 2.1 per cent in April and 4.4 per cent in March.

New listings also slowed, rising by 2.2 per cent, in contrast to 4.8 per cent the previous month.

London has seen demand rise ahead of supply over the last three months and prices move 1.4 per cent.

But demand across northern regions has risen by nine per cent, while supply has grown by 28 per cent.

The time taken to sell currently stands at 9.3 weeks and the proportion of asking price achieved has increased to 93.2 per cent, a level last reached in September 2010, the study indicates.

However, these improvements are concentrated in Southern England and are not representative of a general trend across the country as a whole.

Richard Donnell, director of research at Hometrack, said: “Increased mortgage rates and mounting concerns over the impact of the Eurozone on the UK’s economic growth and employment are likely to keep demand and prices in check as we move into summer.”

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