House prices in November were 0.4% up on October and 8.2% up on November a year ago.

According to the Halifax, the average house price is now £186,941.

Halifax economist Martin Ellis said the pace of annual house price inflation is now at its slowest since February.

He said this was due to receding buyer interest, bringing supply and demand into better balance.

He said: “We expect a further moderation in house price growth over the next year, with prices nationally expected to increase in a range of 3-5% in 2015.”

However, at the same time as issuing its latest house price index, Halifax also published a factsheet on Stamp Duty Land Tax – with positive implications for buyers in all parts of the country.

Strangely, it quotes an average house price for England and Wales of £255,033 – a long way ahead of the figure it gives in its own latest index.

It says the figure is based on Land Registry housing data in the 12 months to September 2014, rather than its own house price index.

Based on the Land Registry figure of just over £255,000, average home buyers across England and Wales will now pay £2,750 in SDLT as opposed to £7,650.

It said that a third of all house sales in England and Wales are in the new threshold of £250,000 to £925,000. In London, the proportion is 64%.

In every region, says the Halifax, buyers are likely to make large savings.

For example, in the north, where the average house price is £149,961, the new SDLT bill is £499 against £1,500 under the old regime.