Date Published 06 July 2012
According to the Halifax House Price Index, released today, house prices were up by 1% from the previous month, despite an annual change of -0.5%.
June 2012 (seasonally adjusted)
- Annual change: -0.5%
- Quarterly change: -0.3%
- Monthly change: +1.0%
- Average Price: £162,417
House prices in the three months to June were 0.3% lower than in the preceding three months (January-March). Prices on this measure of the underlying trend slipped back into negative territory following successive small gains in the two previous months.
House prices increased by 1.0% in June. Prices continue to fluctuate on a monthly basis with an even number of falls and rises in the past 12 months.
Prices in the three months to June were 0.5% lower than in the same period a year earlier. There has been a marked improvement in the annual rate over the past 12 months with an annual decline of 0.5% or less in each of the past three months. The annual rate stood at -4.2% in May 2011.
Commenting, Martin Ellis, housing economist, said:
"House prices in the three months to June were 0.3% lower than in the previous three months. Prices increased by 1.0% in June alone as house prices continue to fluctuate on a monthly basis with an even number of falls and rises over the past year.
"There has been a marked improvement in the annual rate of change over the past 12 months. A year ago, in May 2011, house prices were falling at an annual rate of 4.2%. In contrast, there has been broad stability recently with the annual rate between 0% and - 0.5% in each of the past three months.
"The ending of the stamp duty holiday at the end of March appears to have distorted house price movements and sales in recent months. Nonetheless, despite falling back in April and May, sales remain slightly higher than a year ago.
"Continuing low levels of mortgage payments relative to income and recent increases in employment may have helped support house prices so far this year. We expect little change in prices and sales over the remainder of the year provided that the UK's economic outlook does not deteriorate significantly."
