House price inflation in November rose for the first time in eight months, recording annual growth of 6%, Halifax says.

The lender’s latest House Price Index showed that house prices reached £218,002 in November, growing at the highest rate since the 6.9% recorded in August 2016.

It reverses a trend of slowing growth since a peak of 10% was reached in March.

However, Martin Ellis, Halifax housing economist, says there may still be a slowdown in the coming months.

He said: “House prices in the three months to November were 0.8% higher than in the previous quarter.

“This increase followed little movement in prices on this quarterly measure in both September and October. The annual rate of growth also increased, rising for the first time for eight months from 5.2% in October to 6.0%.

“Despite November’s pick-up, the annual rate has been on a steady downward trend in recent months since reaching a peak of 10.0% in March.

“Heightened affordability pressures, resulting from a sustained period of house price growth in excess of earnings rises, appear to have dampened housing demand, contributing to the slowdown in house price inflation. Very low mortgage rates and an ongoing, and acute, shortage of properties available for sale should help support price levels, although annual house price growth may slow over the coming months.”

Andrew McPhillips, chief economist at Yorkshire Building Society, is still holding on to hopes that the Government will take on its suggestion to make Stamp Duty a seller’s tax in order to boost the market.

He said: “The housing crisis is a significant issue in the UK. The increasing cost of housing is eating away people’s disposable income at a rate which wage growth is not able to compensate for.

“The UK must build more properties in order to make homes more affordable and ensure that there are enough properties available for people to live in in the long-term.

“In order to ease the effects of the crisis in the short term, the Government should consider making stamp duty a seller’s tax to reduce the cost of buying a home.”