House Price Bounce Extends Into August

* House prices rose by 1.6% in August * Year-on-year decline slows from -6.2% to -2.7% * Low interest rates helping to underpin prices for the moment

* seasonally adjusted

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

“The price of a typical house rose for the fourth consecutive month in August, increasing by 1.6% on a seasonally adjusted basis. The 3 month on 3 month rate of change – generally a smoother indicator of the near term trend – rose from 2.7% in July to 3.3% in August, the highest level since February 2007. At £160,224, the average price of a typical UK property is still slightly lower than 12 months ago. However, the annual rate of change rose further in August, from -6.2% to -2.7%. Over the first eight months of 2009, the seasonally adjusted index of house prices has risen by 3.2%, though relative to the October 2007 peak it is down by 14.4%.

For further information please see our August 2009 report (PDF 52KB).

Source: Nationwide