House prices fall for 4th consecutive month in January

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by Kay Murchie

According to property website, Hometrack, house prices in the UK fell for the fourth consecutive month in January.

Falling confidence among potential buyers continues to put downward pressure on house prices said Richard Donnell of Hometrack.

Mr Donnell added that underlying prices are still being supported by a continued tightening in the supply of homes for sale, a trend that is likely to continue. The short term outlook for market activity hinges as much around the outlook for UK interest rates.

Mr Donnell continued that the average time a house spends on the market has now increased to its highest level since the survey commenced in 2001, climbing to 8.5 weeks in January from 8.3 in December.

Hometrack said house prices fell by 0.3% in January, having fallen by the same amount in December. This brought the annual growth rate down to 2.3% - the lowest level since June 2006.

The survey adds to an increasing amount of evidence that the UK property market is slowing fast as past interest rate hikes and the global credit squeeze puts off buyers.