Date issued: 1 Aug 2006

HOUSE PRICES WARM UP AS TEMPERATURES SOAR IN JULY

• House price growth picks up to 0.8% in July
• Annual rate of growth more than double this time last year
• Rental demand supports house prices as affordability deteriorates

Commenting on the figures Fionnuala Earley, Nationwide's Group Economist, said:

"While temperatures soared on the streets, house price growth remained fairly comfortable in July. After three months of broadly flat growth, house prices increased by 0.8% in July. Annual house price growth is now 5.9%, more than double the rate of growth seen this time last year when prices were increasing at an annual rate of only 2.6%. However, the strong rate of annual house price growth reflects the weak patch in prices this time last year. The three monthly rate of growth has picked up slightly compared with last month, but remains on a fairly benign trend. The price of a typical house in the UK is now £167,733, which is £9,385 more than at the same time last year".

For more information, see this month's full house price report