According to the latest House Price Index from Halifax, house prices increased by 1.4% in February, more than offsetting January's fall.
The mixed pattern of monthly price rises and falls is a typical feature of a slower housing market. Annual house price inflation is now at 5.5%, broadly unchanged from December 2005 and January 2006. UK house prices are forecast to rise by 3% in 2006, broadly in line with the predicted rise in retail price inflation.
The annual rate of house price inflation is expected to increase over the next few months as modest price rises compare with slight falls in early 2005; the annual rate is then expected to fall as prices rise at a slower pace than in the second half of 2005.
