Wednesday 4th October 2006
House prices rose by one per cent in September, according to mortgage lender Halifax.
However, the company claims that the housing market may have reached a plateau, as the annual inflation rate now stands at its lowest level since April.
Moreover, the Bank of England says the number of mortgages being approved has stabilised at about 120,000 a month.
Martin Ellis, chief economist at Halifax, said: "We expect increased utility bills and higher interest rates to curb housing demand over the coming months, causing annual house price inflation to ease between now and the end of the year."
Small drops in prices were recorded in Yorkshire and the east midlands, but the company insists this must be placed in context. Both regions have seen house prices more than double in the past five years, it says.
Across all regions, only the north-west has seen no quarterly fall in the past two years, although the north/south divide has begun to increase once more after a four year period of narrowing.
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