U.K. house prices rise in October, London remains worst performer

Housing prices in the United Kingdom rose during the month of October, although revealing the second-weakest performance out of the nine areas surveyed and London remaining the country’s worst performing region.

Asking prices in the capital have risen 2.5 percent in the past year, data released by property website operator Rightmove showed Monday. On a yearly basis, house prices jumped 4.2 percent, up from 4.0 percent in the previous month.

On a monthly basis, asking prices in London rose 2.4 percent in October, while prices nationally increased 0.9 percent, compared to the 0.7 percent increase in September, the data showed.

Further, the number of sales agreed jumped 6.0 percent on-year. By region, total available stock in the south jumped an annual 16 percent, while stock in the north dropped 11.0 percent.

The average price of a house in the capital city of London is GBP645,833 or USD787,000, which is nearly double the national average, forcing home-buyers to search for options outside London to buy residential properties.

"London used to be the country’s jewel in the crown as far as an increase in property prices was concerned and it will come back again," Bloomberg reported, citing Miles Shipside, Analyst, Housing-Market sector.