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| House prices rise by 5.9% in 2009 | House prices rise by 5.9% in 2009 |
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| UK house prices rose by 5.9% in 2009, making some recovery from the massive falls seen last year, the Nationwide building society has said. | UK house prices rose by 5.9% in 2009, making some recovery from the massive falls seen last year, the Nationwide building society has said. |
| The rise in prices seen this year compares with a sharp fall of 15.9% in 2008, Nationwide said. | The rise in prices seen this year compares with a sharp fall of 15.9% in 2008, Nationwide said. |
| The average cost of a home went up for the eighth month in a row in December, rising 0.4% to £162,103. | The average cost of a home went up for the eighth month in a row in December, rising 0.4% to £162,103. |
| Nationwide added that the past decade was the strongest on record for house prices, despite the recession. | Nationwide added that the past decade was the strongest on record for house prices, despite the recession. |
| Property values rose by 117% since the end of 1999. | |
| Taking inflation into account, the average home increased by 68% in value, compared with a 14% fall in real terms in the 1990s. | |
| Nationwide said the recovery in prices had surprised most analysts. | |
| "Few could have foreseen this development at the start of the year, when the near-term price trend was still pointing to a repeat of the double-digit annual decline experienced in 2008," Nationwide chief economist Martin Gahbauer commented. | |
| He added that although house prices were still 12.2% lower than their October 2007 cyclical peak, they had now rebounded by 8.9% since their February 2009 trough. | |
| The outlook for 2010 was unclear, he said. | |
| Although interest rates are likely to remain low and generally supportive of the housing market and mortgage borrowers, there is still uncertainty over unemployment and whether cash-rich buyers could continue to support demand. | |
| "At this stage, it seems likely that 2010 will see no significant house price movements in either direction," Mr Gahbauer said. | |
| "However, the experience of 2009 demonstrates how unpredictable the market is at the current juncture and that one should always be prepared for the UK housing market to surprise." |