High demand sends house prices soaring

Posted: 17 Jul 2006 10:41:16 GMT

The period from early June to early July saw asking prices for houses in England and Wales rising at their quickest annual pace for more than a year.

New research from Rightmove has revealed that asking prices were 10.6 per cent higher in the period than during the corresponding month in 2005, in comparison to a 6.4 per cent discrepancy in the preceding 30-day phase.

Exceptional demand in the south of England was once again the driving force behind this growth, although the property market in Wales also enjoyed a buoyant month.

Miles Shipside, Rightmove's commercial director, observed: "There are always fewer new instructions as we enter the summer months, but this year we have not seen a corresponding fall in the number of buyers - consequently, sellers are asking for more and getting it, especially in the south."

He added: "The last month has seen the biggest rise in nearly five years, but it is skewed by the increases in the southern half of the country, particularly the south-east where prices rocketed by over 12,000 pounds."

While annual house price increases in all southern regions were in double-digits, the north of England saw house prices climbing by only three per cent from last year.

In England and Wales as a whole, the average property is now worth £217,580, after an increase of around three per cent in July.


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