Official stats show slight upturn in house prices
Wednesday, 14 December 2011 9:06 AM
House prices rose 0.6 per cent in October but were still down by 0.4 per cent over the year, according to the Department of Communities and Local Government (DCLG) house price index.
The official statistics show that the average mix-adjusted UK house price was £205,974. That was 0.6 per cent up over the quarter to October compared to a fall of 0.6 per cent in the previous quarter.
Average prices were down over the year in all four countries of the UK, falling by most in Northern Ireland (-12.1 per cent) and least in England (-0.2 per cent). Within England, prices rose in London and the South West but fell everywhere else.
First-time buyers paid prices that were 0.4 per cent higher than a year ago whereas owner-occupiers paid 0.7 per cent less.
Prices of pre-owned homes fell 1.2 per cent in the year to October, an improvement from the -2.1 per cent annual rate in the year to September.
Prices for new-build properties rose 12.1 per cent over the year, a big acceleration on the 8.8 per cent rate recorded in September. However, price changes in the new-build sector tend to be more volatile because there are fewer transactions.
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