House prices have continued to fall during April, but only just - says property website Hometrack.

The fall in the value of homes in April was only by 0.1% however, but this is the tenth consecutive month of price falls says the research.

But Hometrack believes that the market is stabilising, the past 4 months have seen the fall in house prices lessen and there are signs that more buyers are returning to the market.

During April the cost of an average home in the UK was £162,100 - down from March’s £167,700.

Not only have buyers been increasing, but so too are the number of homes on the market. Hometrack believe that because of the excess in supply of homes, buyers are still able to negotiate discounts of up to 6% on the original asking price.

The length of time it takes to sell a home is 7.4 weeks.

John Wriglesworth, Hometrack?s Housing Economist, said: “The forthcoming election, a change of pope, a newly married heir to the throne and the collapse of Rover have done nothing to improve the housing market which remains in the doldrums. Despite buyers returning to the market, there continues to be an excess supply of unsold properties.

Election jitters are not helping, but this is only temporary. Post election, whichever party wins, there is likely to be a bounce back in the market, as the economic and political prospects become more certain, thus encouraging consumer confidence to return. Interest rates, which may rise after the election, are expected to remain historically low, as with unemployment.

Mortgages are still very affordable, and incomes are continually rising. There are no fundamental reasons why the market should not recover, confidence is the key. We continue to predict 3% house price inflation for the year.”

Regional Picture - the big price rises
Central London & City (0.6%),
West Midlands (0.6%),
Dorset (0.5%),
London ? North (0.3%)
and Wiltshire (0.3%).

Regional Picture - the big falls in prices
Bedfordshire (-0.7%),
Gloucestershire (-0.5%),
Surrey (-0.4%),
Oxfordshire (-0.4%)
and London ? East (-0.4%)

City Winners
Bournemouth (2.1%),
Coventry (1.7%),
Winchester (0.7%),
Hull (0.2%)
and York (0.2%).

City Fallers
Milton Keynes (-1.7%),
Lancaster (-1.3%),
Cheltenham (-1.2%),
Southampton (-1.0%)
and Canterbury (-0.8%).