House Price Update 15 December 2010

UK House Prices Situation: Asking prices falling steadily

UK House Prices Forecast: Prices will fall further in most areas over winter

Asking Prices Down 3% Again In December

The latest house price figures from property website Rightmove show that average asking prices fell by a further 3% in December, following a 3.2% fall in November. This latest fall leaves average asking prices just 0.4% higher than they were a year ago and reflects falling seller confidence as competition for buyers heats up. Asking prices have now fallen in five of the last six months.

Rightmove is now forecasting that in 2011, the national average asking price will fall by a further 5%, with price falls in the north of England likely to be more severe.

House Prices Fell Just 0.1% In October – DCLG

Despite the steadily falling asking prices of the last two months, sale prices fell by just 0.1% in October, according to the latest figures from the Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG).

The DCLG said that in October, average completed house prices had risen by 5.5% over the year but were 0.1% down on the previous month and 0.2% down on the quarter to October.

Looked at across the different parts of the UK, significant regional variations were apparent. Over the last year, house prices have risen by an average of 9.1% in Wales and 5.9% in England but have fallen by 0.4% in Scotland and 8.9% in Northern Ireland.

Finally, the figures showed some differences in the prices paid by first-time buyers and those paid by people who had owned houses before. First-time buyers paid, on average, 3.4% more than a year before, while previous owner occupiers paid 6.3% more than a year before. This difference perhaps highlights the importance of home equity and a sizeable mortgage deposit, two advantages that repeat buyers often have over first-time buyers.

Read about UK House Price indexes / key statistics that track the ups and downs of house prices

Read our take on the Credit Crisis the effect on UK House Prices and Mortgages. A Special Report

.