House price inflation stabilising
UK house price inflation seem to have reached a plateau, official data shows.
The Communities and Local Government department (DCLG) survey said UK house prices in May rose 10.9% on an annual basis, down from 11.3% in April.
May's figures - nearly the same as in January - comes as higher interest rates seem to be cooling the market.
Average UK house prices in May hit £211,056 with Northern Ireland experiencing the highest inflation at just under 52% during the past year.
Cooling off
The DCLG figures echo other surveys of house activity and prices, and reinforce the view that the property market is being tempered by successive interest rate rises.
With five increases in interest rates since the summer of last year, and more expected, many experts have been predicting a gentle slowdown.
This year estate agents have noticed a drop-off in enquiries from new buyers.
And there has been a downward trend in new mortgage approvals.
So far though, this has merely halted the rapid acceleration of house price inflation, with prices still rising steadily across the UK.
In London, says the DCLG, prices are picking up again and are now 14.5% higher than a year ago.
Inflation is still rampant in Northern Ireland, where it dropped back in May from 54.1% a year to 51.9%.
Source: bbc.co.uk
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