House Price Update to 2 February 2011

UK House Prices Situation: House prices hovering but going nowhere fast

UK House Prices Forecast: Falls in some areas this year, overall little change

Land Registry Figures Show Wide Regional Variations

The latest house price figures from the Land Registry show that average completed sale prices fell by 0.2% in December. Although this is pretty unremarkable, the regional figures reveal a more interesting story.

In December 2010 alone, London house prices rose by 1%, while house prices in the South West fell by 1.2%. In between these two extremes, house prices fell in the East, Yorkshire and Humber and the North West and remained unchanged or increased in all other parts of England and Wales (Scotland has its own land registry).

Looking at the Land Registry figures for 2010 as a whole, London house prices rose by 6.2%, making the capital the best-performing area of the UK. At the opposite end of the spectrum, house prices fell by 3.3% in the North East, making this region the worst-performing area of the UK.

The North East region also has the lowest average house price in the UK, with the average home costing just £108,056 – a staggering contrast to an average of £208,799 in the East of England and £342,325 in London.

House Prices Slip Slightly In January – Nationwide

House prices slipped another 0.1% in January, according to the latest house price index from mortgage lender Nationwide.

Commenting on the figures, Robert Gardner, Nationwide's Chief Economist said "January's data does little to alter the picture of a sluggish market that has been evident since the summer." Mr. Gardner also observed that the three month on three month rate of change, which is "a better measure of the underlying trend", showed a fall of 0.5%, which he described as "consistent with the gradual moderation in prices that has been in place since the summer of 2010."

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

.