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House prices rise on the month yet slump expected
HOUSE prices rose by 0.5 per cent in December compared with November, the Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG) said yesterday.
However, over the whole of the fourth quarter of 2010, prices fell by 0.4 per cent, compared to the previous three months.
“The DCLG provides lagging evidence on house prices as the office calculates its index at the time when mortgages are completed,” said Howard Archer of IHS Global Insight.
While the department showed a 3.8 per cent annualised rise in prices, this was down from November’s rise of four per cent. “House prices will gradually trend down in 2011 after losing ground in the latter months of 2010,” Archer said.