HOUSE prices made their biggest month-on-month leap from December to January since the pandemic, rising by 1.3 per cent to £359k.

Analysts at Rightmove, who conducted the reading, said the jump gave a "tentatively promising" start to the new year but cautioned that prices are still 0.7 per cent lower than at this time last year.

In London, house prices contracted by four per cent on a monthly basis, with the average cost of a home now £664k.

Buyer demand in the first week of 2024 is also five per cent higher than last year, however, the number of new properties coming to market is still outpacing the rise in demand.

Rightmove said the number of sales agreed is 20 per cent higher than during the first week of last year, as falling mortgage rates have lifted the spirits of prospective buyers.

January was heralded in by a mortgage price war after a slew of high street lenders lowered their deals to below four per cent to drive competitiveness.

(c) 2024 City A.M., source Newspaper