Prosperous 2008 for homeowners

Posted: 22 Jan 2008 10:51:11 GMT

The next 12 months are likely to see UK house prices increase at a sustainable level.

The next 12 months are likely to see UK house prices increase at a sustainable level.

That is according to Assetz, which has published its latest house price index, revealing that annual house price growth reached 6.4 per cent in December.

Although this was down slightly on the November figure of 7.9 per cent, Assetz is confident that growth in 2008 will stabilise at around five per cent.

"The current shortage of property in the UK is a serious problem and cannot be resolved with a quick fix. As a result, prices will strengthen again in due course as the fundamentals of the market are still intact," said Stuart Law, chief executive of Assetz.

"Despite recent negativity across the market, the current climate poses an excellent opportunity for first-time buyers who should strike while the iron is hot and take advantage of some nervy moves from developers and vendors looking to sell quickly, with reduced prices and tempting buyer incentives currently available," he added.

The Assetz House Price Watch is an overview of the data supplied by the five main house price indices.

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