The rate at which house prices are falling speeded up in August, according to Land Registry figures for England and Wales. Prices fell by 1.9% last month, taking the annual rate of decline to 4.6%.

The average house now costs £174,493, which is £8,320 less than a year ago. The fall in August alone was £3,871.

Prices in London fell for the first time (3.2%) since the Registry started publishing figures in 2000.

The Land Registry’s findings are now falling into line with those of Halifax and Nationwide, which have both reported falls of 11% in house prices over the past year. Both the monthly and annual falls reported in August were the biggest so far from the Land Registry, which deals with the prices actually paid by purchasers on completion of the sale.

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