May saw a rise of 0.3%, taking the average price of a home to £167,208

UK house prices stuttered upwards in May with a rise of 0.3%.

The increase took the average price of a home to £167,208 and made up for the 0.2% decline in April.

Prices overall however are down 1.2% for the year, the Nationwide House Price Index showed.

The less volatile three-month on three-month measure of prices shows a rise of 0.6%, little changed from the 0.7% seen in April.

Robert Gardiner, chief economist at Nationwide, said: “Overall, the modest pace of house price growth in May suggests that the property market is continuing to mirror the lacklustre trends evident in the wider economy.”

A survey by the RICS released on 10 May found that house prices had fallen in April, but at the slowest rate since July 2010.