Home prices up by 0.9 per cent, reports Nationwide

Posted under News by Jermaine

Average cost of house has gone up for first time in last sixteen months, but year-on-year values are still reported to be down.

Home prices had gone up by 1 percentage point in March 2009, leading to speculations that UK’s property market was on the way to revival.

According to Nationwide, home cost rose by 0.9%, raising average property price to £150,946 from £147,746. But chief economist Fionnuala Earley and other experts warned that this improvement should not be taken as an end to house price downturn.

Fionnuala pointed out that the Bank of England had already initiated strong measures to help financial and economic markets by lowering rates and commencing quantitative easing. But it will take some more time into the housing market for recovery in home prices.

Nationwide’s report is followed by another good news on housing market that mortgage approvals at the Bank of England had gone up by 19% in February.

According to the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors, there is increase in inquiries from potential buyers for the fourth consecutive month. While Nationwide said that upturn in activity in the month of March was indication of return of buyers who postponed buying a home during financial turmoil at the end of 2008.

According to the chief UK and European Economist, Howard Archer, at HIS Global Insight, too much should not be read into house price rise in March, but nevertheless there are strong indications that housing market’s worst is probably over.