Home prices to stay flat, says the Halifax

Property prices will remain flat across the UK next year as pressure builds on household finances, it emerged yesterday.

Halifax said prices are unlikely to rise except in London and the South-east, where they will grow due to strong demand.

The forecast was made as the mortgage lender reported a bounce-back in house prices last month. It said prices rose 1 per cent in November, faster than the 0.2 per cent expected by economists following a fall of less than 0.1 per cent in October.

Martin Ellis, Halifax's housing economist, said: "The economic situation is set to remain challenging over the coming year. We expect the UK economy to continue to build on its recent signs of recovery, but the pick-up in activity is likely to be very modest, with the pace of growth remaining well below the long-term average rate."