Many 'expect house price rises'

06/02/12

By Dan Smith

More people in the UK now expect house prices to rise rather than fall over the course of 2012, new figures have shown.

According to research from Halifax, nearly a third of survey respondents believe that house price increases will be on the cards this year. This compares to the 22 per cent who predict a fall in values over 2012.

When the lender compiled a similar report in the autumn, 30 per cent of people said they anticipated a drop in prices, while only 28 per cent said prices would grow.

Two-thirds of those queried in the firm's study said they do not anticipate that prices will rise or fall by more than 5 per cent.

Martin Ellis, housing economist at Halifax, said: "The modest improvement in consumer confidence in the outlook for house prices reflects the resilience of the UK housing market over recent months in the face of a weak economic recovery and the deterioration in the outlook for both the UK and global economies."

People in London are currently the most positive when it comes to their house price predictions, while those in the North East are least optimistic.