London housing 'rides out turmoil for now'

The housing market in London is riding out the ongoing economic downturn for now, it has been claimed.

Research from Haart has revealed the average London house price has decreased by 15 per cent this year.

Figures from the estate agency show a 0.1 per cent drop in September to £247,271, while first-time buyer enquiries rose by 0.7 per cent to 21.6 per cent.

The firm claimed these figures indicate a stabilisation of house prices for now.

Russell Jervis, managing director of the company, said: "September started to show the first encouraging signs of green shoots."

He added the month saw a surge of buyers registering to take advantage of more affordable homes and the launch of more attractive mortgage deals from lenders.

Earlier this month, HBOS reported 35 of the 64 university towns surveyed have higher average house prices than the surrounding areas.