New house prices tick down
Prices in the new homes market slipped in June, as house-builders kept a tight hold on their costs, said SmartNewHomes today. The average price of a new home was at £232,292, down 1.2 per cent compared to May, but up 0.4 per cent on the first quarter. “The new homes market performed strongly in the first half of the year, with the average price of a new home up £3,383 since January,” said director Steven Lees. “[But] we are still a long way from building the thousands of extra new homes needed each year to meet the UK’s housing demand,” he added, saying that the government “should not rest on its laurels”.