House prices up

 

House prices in Britain rose 0.6 percent in January, the seventh consecutive monthly rise and leaving prices up 3.6 percent in the three months to January compared with a year ago, mortgage lender Halifax said on Thursday.

January's rise was smaller than in recent months, but still left house prices 9.9 percent above a low hit in April last year. The average price of a home stood at 169,777 pounds.

The recovery in house prices last year was mainly driven by a lack of supply and Halifax said signs that more people are putting their homes up for sale could dampen price rises this year. It stuck with its forecast that prices would flatline over the course of 2010.