The latest Halifax survey has shown that house prices fell by 0.4 per cent in May, following on from a 0.1 per cent fall in April. The average price of a UK house stood at ?167,570 at the end of May.
Conversely, the Nationwide Building Society?s latest report showed that house prices had been increasing recently.
The Halifax figures suggest that house prices were up by 6.9 per cent in the year to May – an increase on the annual increase to April, which was 6.6 per cent. However, the increase in the annual rate came from prices falling faster a year ago, Halifax said.
Chief economist at the bank, Martin Ellis, said: ?The mixed pattern of monthly price rises and falls so far this year is consistent with a slowing market and is in line with our view that house prices will be flat during 2010 as a whole. The relative recovery in house prices in 2009 was driven by a boost to demand from reduced interest rates combined with a lack of properties for sale. These factors have lost some momentum in recent months.?
Other figures in the Halifax report showed that prices have gone down in three of the last four months, and sales have been on the decrease too. In the first quarter of 2010, house sales were down by 18 per cent compared with the last three months of 2009.
Mr Ellis said that estate agents had reported an increase in sales instructions over the past year, and the suspension of Home Information Packs (HIPs) by the new government may have encouraged more people to put their houses on to the UK market.
