31
Jul
House prices drop by 1.7%
House prices fell by 1.7 per cent in July, according to the latest
data from Nationwide, bringing the average value to
£169,316.
This is nearly £15,000 less than at the same time in 2007 but
£11,000 higher than three years ago, despite nine consecutive
months of price drops.
Although property values are falling, the picture for mortgages in
looking up, according to the building society.
It notes that with the Bank of England choosing to hold the base
rate, swap rates have fallen, which in turn has brought the cost of
fixed-rate mortgages down.
"As the cost of mortgages begins to come down, activity could be
bolstered and restore some liquidity to the housing market. However
this is not likely to happen overnight," Fionnuala Earley,
Nationwide's chief economist, commented.
Knight Frank found that prices for prime central London residential
property fell by 1.6 per cent this month, representing the third
consecutive month of price drops.
