House price growth stays steady, says ONS
The UK's official measure of house price growth remained at 5.2% in the year to August, the Office for National Statistics said on Tuesday, with seasonally adjusted average house prices increasing by 0.7% between July and August 2015.
House price annual inflation remained at 5.6% in England, accelerated to 0.8% in Wales from 0.3% the month before, slowed to 2.9% in Northern Ireland from 7.4% a month ago, while the contraction in Scottish house price slowed to -0.9% from 1.3%.
Growth in England was driven by 8.3% growth in the east of the country and the 6.7% in the south east, with house prices outside London and the South East increasing 4.4% in the 12 month period.
The ONS said that while the 5.2% annual headline rate was the joint lowest since September 2013, the ongoing shortage of housing supply combined with strengthening demand suggested upward pressure on house prices remained.
"A number of indicators suggest that supply remains weak, with the lack of homes available for sale increasing competition and supporting prices."
It pointed to its report on output in the construction industry release for August showing a 5.8% fall in new housing construction in the year to August, the largest contraction in 29 months.
The Bank of England reported recently that weak activity could be self-perpetuating, with potential vendors remain reluctant to put their homes on the market without suitable properties available for purchase.
These two dynamics are reflected in the latest data from the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors, which noted the stock of homes available for sale in August fell to a new record low.