House prices rise for first time in 16 months
HOUSE prices rose for the first time in 16 months during March as buyers continued to return to the market, figures showed today.
The cost of a home in the UK increased by 0.9% during the month, pushing average values back up above the £150,000 threshold to £150,946, according to Nationwide.
The surprise increase also led to a reduction in the annual rate at which house prices are falling, with this easing from a record 17.6% in February to 15.7% in March.
But the group cautioned against reading too much into the monthly price rise, saying that it was "far too soon" to see it as evidence that the trough in the market had been reached.
Fionnuala Earley, Nationwide's chief economist, said: "The Bank of England has already taken strong measures to ease the tensions in economic and financial markets by cutting rates and commencing quantitative easing.
"However it will take time for these to work through into the housing market before we can expect a sustained recovery in house prices."
Today's figures add to the recent positive news on the housing market, coming just days after the Bank of England said the number of mortgages approved for house purchase jumped by 19% during February.
