UK house prices surpass 2007 peak

UK house prices have risen above their peak of 2007, the Nationwide has said, after prices climbed 1 per cent in June and were up 11.8 per cent from a year earlier. The building society said the average value of a UK property was £188,903, but in London it had surpassed £400,000 for the first time. Despite the acceleration in house prices, it said there was "significant variation" across the country. And it expected price gains to slow in London from July onwards. The Nationwide based this view on "anecdotal evidence" from surveyors and estate agents, according to a news agency.