House prices have increased by 8.9% over the last year, but there has been a continued slowdown in the monthly rate of growth in recent months.

Hometrack said this morning that the rate of house price growth in London slowed by two-thirds in the last quarter.

By contrast, house prices in Edinburgh, Glasgow, Southampton, Bristol and Birmingham are now all registering higher inflation than the capital in the last three months. This growth is being supported by the fact that house prices are still rising off a low base in many cities.

House prices are above their 2007 peak in eight cities, with London 30.5% above, Cambridge 28.7% and Oxford 21.9%.

The average London house put on £57,000 this year, or four times the national average of £15,200.

Liverpool recorded the lowest increase in values with just £3,000 added to house prices in the last year.

Hometrack is predicting “modest” house price growth next year of 2%.

All of which brings us nicely to this – from Peter Rollings at London agents Marsh & Parsons:

“The contours of the UK housing market have shifted from the start of 2014, with property price rises softening into a more organic upward curve.”

No, we’re not too sure what it means either, but “organic” always sounds good.