house prices rose 0.4 per cent in January, according to figures from the UK's leading building society, which said there were now signs to suggest buyer sentiment was becoming more positive.
The Nationwide said the average price of a property was now £151,757, while the annual rate of house price inflation had eased slightly to 12.6pc from 12.7pc in December.
Alex Bannister, Nationwide's group economist, said: "Since last summer the focus of homeowner and would-be homeowner concern appears to have shifted from "how high interest rates will rise" to the future direction of house prices.
"Consequently, it is increasingly a buyers" market with prospective buyers staying on the sideline until the outlook becomes more certain."
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