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Property prices to show modest growth
12/12/2005 15:00:00
House prices over the course of 2006 could rise by up to three per cent, according to estimates from building society Nationwide.
The organisation claimed to be "cautiously optimistic" that rising confidence in the housing market would lead to a slight rise in property prices over the coming 12 months.
It also reported that over the previous 12 months, house prices had risen by 2.4 per cent.
Nationwide's Fionnuala Earley indicated that the Bank of England's Monetary Policy Committee (MPC), which sets interest rate levels, had done well to ensure house price growth slowed down rather than abruptly crashing.
"The [property] market . . . has been fairly robust and cooled in a stable and controlled way.
"This reflects not only the MPC's careful control of interest rates but also the resilience of consumers' confidence and expectations about the housing market."
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