Property price increases slowing
The rate of house price inflation has slowed to its lowest level since July 2006, according to figures published today.
Research by Nationwide found that prices increased by 0.7 per cent in the last month, taking the average cost of a home in the UK to £184,723.
The figures also showed that the three-month on three-month rate of price growth, the building society's preferred measure, had slowed to from two to 1.6 per cent.
Fionnuala Earley, Nationwide's chief economist, said that the figures were a clear indication that the housing market is slowing down, but predicted there would be good news for borrowers in the near future.
Economic conditions now point towards a cut in the base rate early next year, "which suggests that payment shock for borrowers who need to remortgage in 2008 may not be quite as large as previously anticipated", she said.
Ms Earley added that the cost of fixed-rate mortgage products is likely to fall in the coming months.
The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors' chief economist Oliver Gilmartin said Nationwide's figures indicated the residential property market would become "more sluggish" over the next 12 months.
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