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Analysts surprised by drop in February house prices
Business digest: Halifax reports 0.9 per cent decrease and predicts more falls to come
House prices in February fell by 2.8 per cent compared to figures from February 2010, meaning that the average home in the UK now costs £162,657.
Halifax reported a 0.9 per cent drop in the cost of a home over the last month. This cancels out the 0.9 per cent rise seen in January.
The drop has come as a surprise to analysts, who forecast a much smaller decrease. Rival lender Nationwide showed a 0.3 per cent increase in house prices.
Martin Ellis, the housing economist at Halifax, said that uncertainty over the economic climate would continue to push down prices by around 2 per cent.
Read a full report at Reuters. ·
