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12 Mar 08 - Property Prices Up 1.7% In January
Homeowners have received a boost as new figures show the
average cost of a home increased by 1.7% during January.
The rare good news for the market means the cost of a typical
property now stands at £221,758, according to the
Department for Communities and Local Government.
But the data also reveals the credit crunch is dampening
sentiment as the annual rate of house price growth fell
to a 16-month low of just 8% in the year to the end of January.
Ed Stansfield, property economist at Capital Economics,
said: "With lending standards continuing to tighten
and the economy poised for a significant slowdown, we do
not expect interest rate cuts to revive the housing market."
Howard Archer, chief UK and European economist at Global
Insight, added: "Taking an overall view of the housing
market, including the latest surveys by the Nationwide and
the Halifax, it appears that house prices are cooling markedly
but not collapsing at this stage."
News items supplied by SelectNews, produced by PA Business,
part of the group that owns The Press Association, the UK's
national news agency. Copyright (c) PA Business 2007.
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