UK house prices: 9% annual growth in November reported by Halifax as market now worth £5.1tn

The average house price in the UK increased by 9% in the year to November 2015, Halifax reported. The strong and continuing increase has caused the housing market to soar by £1.8tn in the last 10 years.

On average, houses in the UK were worth £204,552 in November, according to the mortgage provider. With the housing market worth £5.1tn ($7.7tn €7.1tn) at the moment, it has seen a 53% increase in the last 10 years.

The ongoing housing crisis in the UK prompted the government to double its housing budget. However, the initiatives, which include 200,000 affordable first time buyer houses, have prompted critics to say it is not nearly enough to battle the problems in the country.

"The erratic pattern in house prices reported by the Halifax continued as the lender reported that house prices dipped 0.2% month-on-month in November," IHS Global Insight economist Archer Howard said.

Howard noted that Halifax data has been notably more volatile than other house price measures in recent months and stronger overall than the vast majority.

"The three-month/three-month growth rate in house prices smooths out at least part of the volatility and it does show some underlying softening in house prise growth, although it is still relatively solid," he added.