House prices set to 'move sideways', says Nationwide - Introducer Today

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Average house prices across the UK slipped by just 0.1% in March, says today’s new Hometrack report.

Although a tiny fall, it masks huge geographical differences. It is also in contrast to this morning's other house price report, the Nationwide's, which said house prices went up 0.5% in March, and are now 0.1% higher than a year ago. The Nationwide average house price now stands at £164,751, up from February's £161,183.

But Nationwide barely seemed to believe its own numbers, warning that the outlook remains uncertain, with consumer confidence at an all-time low, and that house prices this year are likely to 'move sideways' or sink lower.

According to Hometrack, London house prices have been rising on the back of greater demand and dwindling supply. But across all other regions, prices tiptoed down by between 0.1% and 0.3%.

Features of the Hometrack report include a 4.2% increase in the number of buyers registering with agents, but this was balanced by a 5.2% rise in new property listings, so there are still more sellers than buyers – suggesting that prices could come under further pressure.