Investing.com – U.K. house prices fell more-than-expected in August, down for the second straight month, industry data showed on Thursday.
In a report, U.K. mortgage lender Nationwide said its house price index fell by a seasonally adjusted 0.9% in August, after declining 0.5% in July.
Analysts had expected the house price index to decline by 0.3% in August.
Year-on-year, the report showed that annualized seasonally adjusted home prices in the U.K. rose 3.9%, compared to 6.6% in July.
Commenting on the report, Nationwide's chief economist Martin Gahbauer said “house prices have essentially stagnated over the summer.”
He added, “Recent market trends remain consistent with an unwinding of the supply-demand imbalance that drove up prices for much of the last year. As more sellers have returned to the market, buyers have a greater selection of properties to choose from and more bargaining power with which to bid down asking prices.”
Following the release of the data the pound was down against the U.S. dollar, with GBP/USD shedding 0.37% to hit 1.5396.
In a report, U.K. mortgage lender Nationwide said its house price index fell by a seasonally adjusted 0.9% in August, after declining 0.5% in July.
Analysts had expected the house price index to decline by 0.3% in August.
Year-on-year, the report showed that annualized seasonally adjusted home prices in the U.K. rose 3.9%, compared to 6.6% in July.
Commenting on the report, Nationwide's chief economist Martin Gahbauer said “house prices have essentially stagnated over the summer.”
He added, “Recent market trends remain consistent with an unwinding of the supply-demand imbalance that drove up prices for much of the last year. As more sellers have returned to the market, buyers have a greater selection of properties to choose from and more bargaining power with which to bid down asking prices.”
Following the release of the data the pound was down against the U.S. dollar, with GBP/USD shedding 0.37% to hit 1.5396.