House prices continue upward move

UK house price inflation picked up in September, according to the Department of Communities & Local Government.

Prices rose by 0.8% in September, pushing the annual rate of house price inflation up from 7.7% to 8%. The cost of the average UK property rose from £197,631 to £198,552 between August and September, the DCLG said.

Annual house price inflation rates rose in England, Scotland and Wales, but fell slightly, from a very high level, in Northern Ireland.

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North leads the way as property prices keep on soaring

Land Registry figures see sales up by a quarter

Average cost in England and Wales is £199,184

Property prices rose at their strongest rate since the beginning of 2005 in the latest quarter, increased by 7.7% from a year ago, while the number of sales was up by almost a quarter, the Land Registry reports today.

The renewed strength in house prices this year is thought by economists to be a significant reason behind the Bank of England's interest rate rise last week which took the base rate up to 4.75%.

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Watch the 125% mortgage trap

First-time buyers taking huge mortgages that are larger than the value of their home could wait five years before they break even.

And if house prices do not continue to rise at their current rate buyers risk being trapped in their home by negative equity for years.

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Home information packs trial begins

A trial of home information packs (Hips) aimed at reducing the number of collapsed house sales began today, despite resistance from parts of the property industry.

The packs, which will become mandatory from June 2007, will provide potential homebuyers with up-front information and an energy efficiency report on a house.

They are aimed at speeding up the homebuying process and cutting the number of transactions that fail late in the day.

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