This article is from the source 'bbc' and was first published or seen on . It will not be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/-/1/hi/business/7812108.stm
The article has changed 9 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
| Version 0 | Version 1 |
|---|---|
| House prices 'fell 15.9% in 2008' | House prices 'fell 15.9% in 2008' |
| (20 minutes later) | |
| House prices fell by 15.9% last year, according to the latest survey by the Nationwide building society. | House prices fell by 15.9% last year, according to the latest survey by the Nationwide building society. |
| It says prices fell by another 2.5% in December taking the average house price down to £153,048 - £29,000 less than a year ago. | It says prices fell by another 2.5% in December taking the average house price down to £153,048 - £29,000 less than a year ago. |
| The building society says that as prices have now fallen for 14 months in a row they are 18% lower than their peak in October 2007. | The building society says that as prices have now fallen for 14 months in a row they are 18% lower than their peak in October 2007. |
| The Nationwide's chief economist said last year was a "year of turmoil". | The Nationwide's chief economist said last year was a "year of turmoil". |
| "The disruption in the financial markets worsened throughout 2008 and had larger implications for the real economy than we anticipated a year ago," said Fionnuala Earley. | "The disruption in the financial markets worsened throughout 2008 and had larger implications for the real economy than we anticipated a year ago," said Fionnuala Earley. |
| "This time last year we expected the housing market to cool quickly as affordability was poor and economic conditions looked set to weaken, but we did not anticipate the speed of house price falls or the extent of the global and domestic economic slowdown," she added. | "This time last year we expected the housing market to cool quickly as affordability was poor and economic conditions looked set to weaken, but we did not anticipate the speed of house price falls or the extent of the global and domestic economic slowdown," she added. |
| Recession | |
| The Nationwide's survey confirms last week's report from the Halifax which also said that prices had dropped by 16% in 2008. | |
| Until the economy and the labour market stabilise, it is hard to imagine households becoming upbeat about the immediate future for house prices Fionnuala Earley, Nationwide | |
| Last year saw the biggest annual house price drop on record, which was prompted by a sharp fall in the availability of mortgage funds from lenders who had been hit by the international credit crunch. | |
| This led to a sudden drop of in demand from buyers at a time when house prices had already reached record levels, as a result of which sales are currently down by 60%. | |
| With mortgage approvals suffering an even bigger fall, sales and prices are expected to continue to drop for the time being. | |
| Ms Earley warned that economic recession would drag the housing market down further. | |
| "Until the economy and the labour market stabilise, it is hard to imagine households becoming upbeat about the immediate future for house prices and this will hinder the pace of recovery," she said. | |
| "In addition, the wider economic recession also impacts negatively on household expectations of future incomes." |