A widely watched index of housing valuations in the United Kingdom posted 0.3% growth this month after a flat reading for October. Nationwide Building Society said in results of its regular survey that the strongest increase since July translated to a rise in the annual rate by 0.3 percentage points to 1.9%. Still, it fell short of levels it has held since mid-2013 and the average price, unadjusted for seasonal variations, actually declined 0.2% to £214,044.
The cooperative calculated the three-month rolling change in the indicator remained at 0.3%, the weakest pace since June.
"In the near term, the squeeze on household budgets and the uncertain economic outlook is likely to continue to dampen demand, even though borrowing costs remain low and the unemployment rate is near 40-year lows... Net additions to the housing stock are now just 0.6% below 2007 levels," said Robert Gardner, chief economist. He noted the lag in household incomes is "already moderating" parallel to a "significant pickup" in construction and conversion of commercial property into homes.
