Commentary by Ruban Selvanayagam

• According to the latest UK House Price Index, average house prices saw an annual price rise of 8.5% (to December 2020);
• The latest Hometrack UK Cities House Price Index reported that Liverpool saw the greatest year-on-year house price growth at 6.8%.  This was followed by Manchester (6.3%), Leeds (5.5%), and Nottingham (5.4%);
• The most recent Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) report observed that enquiries, sales and new instructions are falling for the first time since May; house prices continue to rise for the time being and expectations point to a more subdued trend in sales persisting over the near term.