UK House Prices Situation at 27 4 2007: Prices remain strong, especially in London/south-east.

UK House Prices Forecast: Continued growth in most competitive areas, stable prices elsewhere.

Rightmove Reports 3.6pc Price Rises In April

Property website Rightmove has reported record house price increases as the Easter home buying season has got underway.

Between March 11th and April 7th, the average asking price of property for sale on the site increased by 3.6 per cent – pushing Rightmove's annualised rate of house price inflation from 12.2 per cent to 15 per cent – the highest rate since May 2003.

Buyers and sellers should not expect another boom, however, says Miles Shipside, as the ongoing rises mean that "fewer buyers can afford to get on the ladder or trade up, and that will restrain ongoing increases in many parts of the country."

Regional differences continue to play their role in rising prices too, with prices in London's Chelsea and Kensington districts up almost 90 per cent on the year, but prices in Wales up a mere 6 per cent over the same period.

Bad News For Public Sector Workers

A new survey by Halifax has revealed that average house prices in 7 out of 10 UK towns are so high that most public sector workers are unable to afford to buy homes in them.

The figures from the Halifax Key Worker Housing Review show how much the gap between key worker salaries and house prices has widened in recent years – in 2002, only four in ten towns had average house prices that were unaffordable to key workers.

US-Style Housing Crash "Unlikely"

Despite ever-higher levels of mortgage borrowing in the UK, a US-style housing crash is unlikely, according to Ray Boulger of mortgage brokers Charcol. Boulger said that "there are lots of differences between the US and the UK, which makes a crash unlikely."

He also said that the UK could be susceptible to a general decline in the US economy, but more cautious lending practices and limited housing supply should ensure the ongoing stability of the UK market.