House prices in tiny fall in January

Nationwide says UK house prices fell by 0.2% between December and January.

UK house prices fell by 0.2% in January, according to Nationwide’s latest House Price Index. However, they are 0.6% higher than they were in January 2011. The average UK house price is now £162,228.

Nationwide is keeping its cautionary stance on future house price movements, saying “prices are likely to continue to move sideways or only modestly lower in the months ahead”.

It says that finding a deposit is still the biggest hurdle for many buyers, even though the median deposit has fallen from 25% at the height of the financial crisis in 2008 to 20% now.

It forecasts something of a buyer’s market in the months ahead, subject to them being able to get finance, although it expects fewer houses to come onto the market. This echoes property website rightmove’s recent Consumer Price Forecast.

Property analysts Hometrack say that there has been a 23% drop in buyers registering with estate agents between August and January, which also suggests prices are going to go nowhere fast.

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