British house price inflation declines

(MENAFN) UK's house prices grew at their slowest annual rate in more than a year this month but the market looks set to recover in 2015 if the economy improves as expected, a survey from mortgage lender Nationwide showed, Gulf News reported.

Nationwide confirmed that house prices increased 7.2 percent in the year to December, the smallest annual growth since November 2013 and for a fourth consecutive month. Economists had expected growth of 7.5 percent.

British housing market activity and price rises have been slowing since the middle of the year, in part because of steps by regulators to require lenders to make tougher checks on borrowers' ability to repay mortgages.

House prices increase in the three months to December, which many analysts view as the best guide to the short-term trend in house prices, nevertheless ticked up 1.0 percent, from 0.9 percent in the preceding three months.