Thursday 31st January 2008
Figures from property market analyst Hometrack show the average UK house price dropped by 0.3 per cent in January 2008.
This is the same as the shift detected in December 2007 and the fourth month in a row that valuations have declined, the organisation asserts.
Within the data, it is also discovered that the percentage of properties being sold for the asking price has also fallen.
A year ago, 96 per cent of houses were achieving the desired price, compared with 93.5 per cent in the latest survey.
Director of research Richard Donnell observes that while there is lesser demand for house purchases among consumers, decreased supply is helping to sustain prices and avoid a more significant slump.
"Underlying prices continue to be supported by a tightening in supply of homes for sale," he explains.
"The survey shows that, over January, supply fell by 4.6 per cent and that it is down by ten per cent over the last six months."
Meanwhile, the average time taken to sell a property is at an all-time high of 8.5 weeks.
While the Hometrack survey was first compiled in 2001, Bank of England statistics show the current condition of the property market could be at its worst level since the mid-90s.
Just 73,000 new mortgages were approved in December, down from a peak of 129,000 in November 2006.
Prior to last month, the previous time market activity dropped to such a level was July 1995 as the mortgage sector began to emerge from a three-month ebb.
Analyst Capital Economics suggested that the Banks figures show "the housing downturn is rapidly gathering speed, with tighter credit conditions dampening both mortgage and unsecured lending".
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