53% of people surveyed thought house prices would continue to rise.

U.K. house prices will extend gains over the next 12 months as supplies remain constrained and the economy improves, Rightmove Plc said, citing a survey of consumers.
Fifty-three percent of respondents forecast that average house prices will increase over the year, the U.K.’s biggest property Web site said in a statement today in London. In a similar survey a year ago, just 10 percent of Britons expected prices to rise.
The U.K. property market is rebounding after its worst slump since the early 1990s, with reports from Rightmove and Nationwide showing prices are increasing. While the economy is showing signs of recovery from the recession, Prime Minister Gordon Brown and opposition Conservative leader David Cameron are battling to convince voters they are best placed to reduce a ballooning budget deficit and revive growth ahead of an election that must take place by June.
“Given the looming election and the talk of pending austerity packages ahead, this consumer survey highlights a surprisingly positive property price outlook,” Miles Shipside, commercial director of Rightmove, said in the statement. Consumers have the “impression that we are over the worst of the recent price falls and that there is likely to be upward pressure on prices.”
Rightmove surveyed 32,771 people from Jan. 4 to Jan. 18 for the survey.
Bank of England policy makers this month kept the benchmark interest rate at a record low of 0.5 percent. U.K. unemployment fell at the fastest pace since April 2007 last month.
“Employment seems to be holding up, and forced sales have been below forecasts,” Shipside said. “People hear these positive stories in the news and also directly feel the benefit of base rates being at record lows.”

For further information on the sales market go to www.trustintudor.co.uk