30
Jan
House prices fall further
House prices have fallen further, new figures from Nationwide have
revealed.
The average house price in the UK dropped from the December 2008
figure of £153,048 to £150,501 this month, a fall of 16.6
per cent since January 2008.
Such a trend may help increase affordability for first-time buyers,
although the building society noted that so far the higher numbers
of enquiries being reported by estate agents are not leading to
higher approval rates.
However, suggested senior Nationwide economist Martin Gahbauer,
this situation has a "reasonable" chance of improving, partly as a
result of the recent actions by the government aimed at increasing
the flow of credit, as well as the positive impact on the wider
economy that moves such as interest rate cuts will have over
time.
Commenting this week on the package announced by the Treasury
earlier this month aimed at increasing lending, the Council of
Mortgage Lenders said it amounts to a "comprehensive and
co-ordinated" series of measures that should have a positive effect
on the market.
