British home prices soar 3.6 per cent this month, at record highs
Prices gain 3.6 per cent this month as housing market benefits from fewer jobless, low interest rates and government mortgage schemes
Asking prices for homes in Britain hit a record high this month, adding to concerns about the speed at which the housing market is growing.
Asking prices rose 3.6 per cent in the four weeks to May 10 - the biggest increase for this period - to an average of £272,003 (HK$3.55 million). They were up 8.9 per cent from a year ago, the highest annual rate since October 2007.
"May is a traditionally bullish price-rise month, though this year's 3.6 per cent jump beats the previous May high of 3.2 per cent set in 2002," said Miles Shipside, a director at Rightmove.
"A late Easter in the heart of the house-hunting season has not only concertinaed the traditional hottest home-moving period by several weeks, but also stagnated seller numbers, further stirring up prices in areas of buoyant demand."
London prices traditionally pick up earlier than the rest of the country
Britain's economy has been growing faster than most of its industrialised peers, with the housing market standing out as it benefits from falling unemployment, record low interest rates and government mortgage schemes.
Bank of England officials have been expressing more concern about the strength of the property market, and targeted measures to curb it are expected next month.