Further signs of a slowdown in the housing market emerged yesterday, but continuing rises in house prices meant economists said it was too early to call an end to the boom.
The Financial Times and Halifax price indexes both went up again in June.
The FT price index rose 1.2% in June compared with May, taking the annual rate of house price inflation to 18.1%.
Halifax said its index of annual house price inflation reached 21.5% last month, a rate not topped since last June. Halifax’s report of a monthly increase of 1.2% was the slowest since November.
Halifax chief economist Martin Ellis said: “This suggests the recent increases in the cost of borrowing are beginning to curb housing demand.”
But economists warned that the continued robust nature of house price inflation, despite the slowdown, meant it was too early to conclude that it was the start of a sustained turnaround.
References: Financial Times 03/07/04 page 1, Daily Telegraph 03/07/04 page 2, The Times Business 03/07/04 page 64, The Guardian 03/07/04 page 30
