Nobody’s calling the bottom of the market just yet, but today the Nationwide Building Society said that UK house prices rose 1.2% in May – the biggest rise in over a year and a half.

Is this the start of the great house price recovery? Probably not. With the economy predicted to contract by 3.5% this year, unemployment set to rise, and the general scarcity of lending capital showing few signs of abating, May 2009 could well be a blip on the graph.

According to the Nationwide House Price Index, April saw a 0.3% fall (-15% year-on-year), while May’s 1.2% rise puts average house prices 11.3% down on 2008 prices.

Whether the recovery’s started or not, it does at least look as though the rate at which prices fall should be wholly more manageable than in 2008.

Learn more about how house prices are calculated, or read the full May 2009 Nationwide House Prices Report.

Which way do you think house prices will go? Has the market bottomed out? Let us know your thoughts by leaving comments below…

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February 2009 saw the lowest level of lending on mortgages since 1991, according to the British Bankers’ Association. The total amount borrowed on mortgages last month was just £9.2billion (down from 9.7billion in January).

While gross lending may be down, the number of individual mortgage approvals rose from just over 24,000 in January to 28,179 in February. This figure is inevitably well down on 2008, but it suggests that more people are buying more houses for less money. Sellers are willing to accept lower offers and those previously priced out of the market are finding themselves in a position to buy. With London house prices stabilising, there are some genuine signs of a modest market recovery and a correction of house prices to more realistic levels.

Findaproperty.com have more detailed info – note that mortgage approvals for house purchases are up, while remortgaging approvals are down.

What do you think about the latest figures, and how do they affect you? Please leave your comments below…

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Apparently we’re becoming a nation of camping and caravan enthusiasts, with bookings for this type of trip up 40% on 2008. Brits are going crazy for homegrown holidays, and many are predicting the reemergence of the classic British seaside resort after years in the shadows.

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Channel 4 News has reported that Northern Rock are making £14billion available over the next two years, for first time buyer mortgages and homeowner remortgaging.

This comes at the start of a week where the Government is expected to (quite rightly) increase pressure on the banking sector to make bailout cash available to businesses and prospective house buyers.

Read the full story here.

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With the base rate of interest currently set at 1%, and first time buyer mortgage approvals on the rise, there’s a big risk that new homeowners only planning for the present will get caught short once rates increase.

As recently as September 2008 the base rate was 5%. It’s quite possible that the rate could rise as fast as it fell, which would leave first-time buyers on currently attractive-looking tracker deals significantly out-of-pocket. Having shopped around for deals myself recently, I can testify that there’s some cheap-looking tracker deals out there if you’ve got a decent deposit – buying becomes quite a bit cheaper than renting in many cases. But be warned – have you made adequate allowance for big shifts in the base rate? I haven’t, so I won’t be buying.

(If you’re looking for a deal, the 4Homes Mortgage Finder is a quick way to find out the various mortgage offers you can get from loads of lenders…)

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The Halifax reported today that house prices rose 1.9% in January. This means the average UK house price is now just shy of £164,000. This is an enormous 16.8% down on January 2008’s £197,243 figure. Mortgage applications and approvals, particularly first time buyer mortgages, were also up month-on-month. Not quite a return to the heady days of 2007, but more a sign that the market might now be settling down, with first time buyers set to benefit.

Also today, the Bank of England cut the base rate of interest to 1%. If you’re on a tracker, quids-in. It’s the fifth rate cut since October, when the rate was set at what now seems like an astronomical 5%. Expect your savings account’s dwindling interest to take another hit.

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It’s no secret that energy prices have rocketed in recent years, and there’s also no escaping the fact that fossil fuels are becoming scarcer, harder to extract and increasingly damaging to ecosystems across the world. If you’re losing sleep about the environment, or like me you’re just a bit of a tightwad, then help is at hand.

4Homes has teamed up with the Energy Saving Trust to bring you video tips fronted by 4Homes fave Naomi Cleaver, as well as the surprisingly useful interactive house tool.

Based on the interactive house recommendations, I can cut my carbon emissions at home by 50%. 50%! And this isn’t by doing things that are completely unrealistic for me, like buying and installing solar panels or trading in my non-existent car for a more efficient model. Instead, just by spending a weekend wrapping my hot water pipes in insulation and switching electronics off at the wall, I could be pumping out 50% less carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. Great news for polar bears and penguins everywhere. But more immediately for me in these credit-crunchingly difficult times, using 50% less energy means half price bills. Ker-ching.

To save yourself wads of cash and to reduce your carbon footprint, check out the Energy Saving Trust’s videos and interactive tips here.

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