London hardest hit as house prices suffer further falls
Fresh evidence that the housing market is continuing to deteriorate emerged today as an influential survey revealed prices fell for the tenth month in a row – with most of the declines hitting London.
House prices fell a further 1.2 per cent in July, compared to a 1 per cent fall from June, according to the Hometrack survey. The average property now costs £168,500. Prices have slipped 4.4 per cent in the last year to reach levels last seen in October 2006.
Adding to woes, the average time taken to sell a home almost doubled in the last month to 11 weeks with sellers receiving on average only 90.9 per cent of their asking price.
Richard Donnell, Hometrack’s research director, said the results showed the housing market remains “weak” with demand dropping 20 per cent in the last three months.
“With no immediate end in sight, activity levels are likely to remain suppressed with prices remaining under pressure into the autumn,” he said.
Southern England – London in particular – has been the hardest hit region with the highest concentration of price falls in the country. London topped the list with 77 per cent of the capital recording an average drop of 1.3 per cent drop in July. Sales nationwide fell 2.9 per cent in July and 2.4 per cent in London.
It comes as Sir James Crosby, the former HBOS chief executive, will tomorrow publish his interim report into the problems faced by mortgage lenders. The report was commissioned by the Treasury to examine ways to boost confidence in the mortgage market.