It should not come as a surprise that once again the average national house price was helped along by the increase in London.  London has been able to stay above the drowning house price levels that have plunged in other areas and put many homeowners into negative equity.  According to the latest data from the Land Registry the month of September revealed a slight dip in house prices in England and Wales when compared to the figures published for the previous month.  The annual comparison however revealed an increase of 1.1% between September 2011 and September 2012.

The data revealed that London properties have held value fairly well considering the economy had been submerged into a double dip recession in the first and second quarters and had recorded an annual 5.5% increase.  The decline recorded overall for England and Wales for the month of September amounted to 0.3% which brought the average house price to £162,561.

It is hoped that there will be a boost to house prices as there is usually an increase of buyers in the market this time of year.  Hopeful home buyers hope to choose a property, gain a loan and be moved before the holidays begin.  There is optimism that this could occur to a level that will assist the housing market due to the historically low interest rates currently being offered by lenders. 

Mortgage interest rates have been assisted by the government’s Funding for Lending programme that is making funds for lenders available at more affordable rates than what is available to them on the global lending market.  The requirement is that loans be made readily available to those that can qualify and at cheap interest rates.  Interest rates are expected to remain cheap on mortgage deals and if demand grows then there should be a boost in the housing market which could assist the economy in its last quarter to perform in 2012.