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Official data shows British house prices rise 9.6 pct in March

Xinhua, May 19, 2015 Adjust font size:

British housing prices increased by 9.6 percent in the year to March 2015, up from 7.4 percent in the year to February 2015, according to official data released on Tuesday.

On a seasonally-adjusted basis, average house prices increased by 1.1 percent between February and March 2015, said the Office for National Statistics (ONS).

Average mix-adjusted house prices in March 2015 stood at 273,000 pounds (423,450 U.S. dollars) and London continued to be the region with the highest average house price at 498,000 pounds, said ONS.

These figures came as the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML) reported that 156,100 loans were advanced for home purchase in the first quarter of 2015, down by 9 percent compared to the same period of 2014.

"The relative weakness in home mover loans is a symptom of the acute lack of stock on the market -- homeowners are currently very reluctant to move," said Matthew Pointon, property economist at research consultancy Capital Economics.

"That lack of stock is putting upwards pressure on house prices," he added. (1 pound = 1.55 U.S. dollars) Endit