House prices up in May, says Nationwide

Posted: 29 May 2009 12:05:43 GMT

Nationwide Building Society's latest research into house prices in the UK has shown that the average cost of a home went up in May.

The financial services provider's monthly survey indicated that the average value of housing in the country rose to £154,016 this month.

It represented a 1.2 per cent increase on April's figure, and was the second time since March that property prices increased month-on-month.

Martin Gahbauer, Nationwide's chief economist, remarked: "Although the short-term trend in house prices has clearly improved from where it was at the beginning of the year, it is still too early to say that the market is turning definitively."

Emphasising his point, he said that there were a number of house price fluctuations recorded in the economic downturn of the early 1990s.

Next week, the Land Registry is scheduled to release its April house price figures for England and Wales. The research has a geographic breakdown, allowing people to see which areas have the most expensive property.


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