Everest industry news

30 April 2008

The average price of a house in the UK is now £178,555, according to the latest data from Nationwide.

This sum is £1,759 lower than the corresponding month last year, following an estimated slump in average prices of 1.1 per cent over the course of April.

Despite recent falls in property market activity, as most house hunters opt to be patient, a special liquidity scheme introduced by the Bank of England is expected to sustain activity.

The Monetary Policy Committee also voted to reduce the base rate of interest by a quarter point to five per cent this month, a cut which has been passed on by most of the leading lenders.

According to Nationwide's chief economist Fionnuala Early: "The bank's measures should help restore a more orderly transition and ultimately bring about a more stable market."

She also predicted that "around 85 per cent of borrowers will be seeing no impact or will benefit directly from reductions in the bank rate this year".

"This is good news for the overall stability of the housing market and is a significant factor that differentiates the housing market of today from that of the late 1980s and early 1990s," she explained.

As house prices become more realistic, homeowners looking to sell are advised by a number of experts to consider green improvements, such as double glazing.

Double glazing can not only help reduce fuel costs by minimising heat wastage, but can also cut out noise and make homes more desirable to prospective buyers.