New house price increase of 7.7pc fuels fear of a bubble – Telegraph Blogs

New house price increase of 7.7pc fuels fear of a bubble – Telegraph Blogs

When will the bubble burst? (Photo: Barcroft)

House prices increased by 7.7pc over the last year among newly built properties, raising fears that Government initiatives to help first-time buyers could be luring many to overpay their way into negative equity.
Office for National Statistics (ONS) figures show flat or falling prices across the housing market as a whole but  include a surprise surge in new house prices. Government intervention to help first-time buyers may have had  the unintended effect of inflating debts young homebuyers take on while the real beneficiaries are builders.
According to the ONS, the average house price across Britain – taking all types of property into account – increased during the year to February by 0.3pc; scarcely a significant statistic. But during the same period, the average price obtained for new dwellings increased by 7.7pc to £221,247.