* seasonally adjusted

Commenting on the figures Martin Gahbauer, Nationwide’s Chief Economist, said:

The price of a typical UK property rose by a seasonally adjusted 1.0% month-on-month (m/m) in April, leaving house prices 10.5% higher than a year earlier. Over the lifetime of the last Parliament (May 2005 to April 2010), house prices have risen by 6.7%. This compares to a 13.5% increase in the consumer price index, the official target measure of inflation.

April’s figures show the first double-digit annual growth in UK house prices since June 2007. The year-on-year rate in this month’s figures, however, received an additional boost from the fact that April 2009 was one of the weaker months last year. Given the very strong performance of house prices from May 2009 onwards, it will take monthly increases in excess of 1% for the annual rate of inflation to be maintained in double digits going forward. The smoother three month on three month rate of inflation edged down further from 1.5% in March to 1.1% in April, which primarily reflects the impact of February’s 1.0% decline in house prices. April’s figures leave UK house prices exactly 10% below the October 2007 peak.

For further information please see  April 2010 report (PDF 64KB).

The annual change stands at minus 3.4 per cent. This is the sixth month in a row in which the fall in annual change has decreased. The average house price in England and Wales is now £159,546.

All regions in England and Wales experienced a decrease in their average property values over the last 12 months. The region with the most significant annual price fall was the West Midlands with a movement of  minus 6.3 per cent. The North West experienced the greatest monthly rise with a movement of 1.9 per cent. Wales was the region with the most significant monthly price fall with a movement of minus 2.3 per cent.

The most up-to-date figures available show that during August 2009 the number of completed house sales in England and Wales rose by 11 per cent to 53,236 from 48,109 in August 2008. Transaction volumes, while no longer falling at 2007 rates, remain relatively low.

For more information and to view the report in full, visit www1.landregistry.gov.uk/houseprices/

Notes

1. Since 2006, Land Registry’s House Price Index (HPI), which is available free at www1.landregistry.gov.uk/houseprices/ has gathered its own momentum to become a leading indicator of property movement within England and Wales. It is widely viewed as “the most accurate barometer of the housing market”.

2. The HPI is published on the twentieth working day of each month. The November index will be published at www1.landregistry.gov.uk/houseprices/ at 11:00 hours on Friday 30 December 2009.

3. The HPI uses a sample size that is larger than all other statistical measures available. It is calculated using Land Registry’s dataset of all residential property sales completed in England and Wales since January 1995.

4. Land Registry’s dataset contains details on 15 million residential transactions. Of these, over five million are identifiable matched pairs, providing the basis for the repeat sales regression analysis used to complete the index. This technique of quality adjustment ensures an “apples to apples” comparison between properties.

5. With the largest transactional database of its kind detailing over 22 million titles, Land Registry underpins the economy by safeguarding ownership of many billions of pounds worth of property.

6. As a government department established in 1862, executive agency and trading fund responsible to the Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State for Justice, Land Registry keeps and maintains the Land Register for England and Wales. The Land Register has been an open document since 1990.

7. For further information about Land Registry visit www.landregistry.gov.uk

Contacts

Marion Shelley 020 7166 4543

marion.shelley@landregistry.gsi.gov.uk
Esther McWatters 020 7166 4487

esther.mcwatters@landregistry.gsi.gov.uk
Press Office 020 7166 4215