Nationwide Predicts Positive Change in House Market

27 Jan 2005

The Nationwide has announced that January house prices have risen by 0.4% to date. Based on the new figures, the building society says that the housing market is becoming more positive.

The Nationwide report concluded that the UK housing market has now enjoyed six months of “price stability” and belief that interest rates are near a peak may spark an upturn in the market.

Nationwide says it expects interest rates to peak at 5% in spring or summer.

The latest figures show that the average price of a property is now £151,757. The annual rate of house price inflation was shown to have eased slightly – it now stands at 12.6%, down from 12.7% in December.

Nationwide’s group economist, Alex Bannister, said that it is still a “buyers market”. He said: “Since last summer the focus of homeowner and would-be homeowner concern appears to have shifted from ‘how high interest rates will rise’ to the future direction of house prices.”

However, Mr. Bannister says that the market appears to be buoying-up and added: “With prices having been broadly stable for six months and the market nearing the end of the usual seasonal lull, there are indications that sentiment may be about to turn more positive.”

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