Last updated 11:43, Wednesday, 02 July 2008

UK HOUSE prices fell by 0.9 per cent on average last month, according to the latest survey from the Nationwide.

The decline was less severe than the record 2.5 per cent fall seen in May, but prices were now 6.3 per cent lower than a year ago, the Nationwide said.

The average home now costs £172,415 and is £13,629 cheaper than at the top of the market in October last year.

The Nationwide survey found that the housing market in Scotland had been more resilient than elsewhere.

Although prices in the three months to June had fallen in Scotland by 1.8 per cent compared with the previous quarter, it was the only area to see an annual growth, up 0.6 per cent.

Nationwide suggested that the sharp rise in oil prices had benefited some regions, and prices had not shot up as quickly during the housing boom.