Uk: Pay Day
According to new research by the Nationwide and Halifax, house prices in the UK rose once again in August, thanks in part to low interest rates being maintained and an increase in buyer confidence following months of sustained improvements...
Whilst prices remain lower than last year, they are only marginally so. 2009 seems to have exceeded all expectations in terms of the health of the housing market, with evidence suggesting that prices may end the year higher than they started.
This would have been unthinkable a short while ago and is being attributed in part to interest rates, which have been kept on hold at 0.5 per cent by the Bank of England since March of this year.
The Nationwide revealed that UK house prices rose for the fourth month in a row during August, climbing by 1.6 per cent.
This puts the average price of a home, says the latest house price index from the Halifax, at £160,224, up from £158,871 in July of this year, and meaning that houses are now just 10 per cent cheaper than the same time last year.
Martin Ellis, Halifax Housing Economist, said, “Demand for housing has increased since the start of the year due to better affordability and low interest rates.
“This, together with low levels of property available for sale, has boosted house prices over the last few months,” he added.
All of the major indices are now reporting increasing demand for properties aswell, further fuelling that rise in buyer confidence.
Gary Smith of the National Association of Estate Agents, said, “The latest statistics from Nationwide appear to confirm that the housing market has finally bottomed out.”
