Government figures confirm house price slowdown

Published: November 30, 2007

House prices in London dipped more than those of any other areas of the country in October, new figures suggest.

Data from the government's Land Registry suggested that the cost of the average house in the capital dropped by 0.6 per cent to £351,039 in the month.

Other regions that saw property prices dip include the East Midlands, south-west and Yorkshire and the Humber.

In contrast, the figures showed that property prices in Wales increased by two per cent during the period.

Overall, the Land Registry reported that the average home in England and Wales now costs £184,346 - up 8.1 per cent on the same month last year.

Earlier this week, Nationwide published data suggesting that house prices dropped by 0.8 per cent in November.

Both sets of figures indicate that consumers are finding it harder to find the best mortgage deals as a result of rising interest rates.

However, Nationwide said that that it did not "expect a recession"during 2008.