House prices are likely to increase at more than three times the rate previously predicted this year, according to an industry body. The Council of Mortgage Lenders (CMLs), which represents banks and building Societies, said it expected the value of the average property in the UK to rise by 7 per cent during 2006, well above the 2 per cent it had originally forecast in February. The group now expects around 1.2 million properties to change hands this year, up from the 970,000 it had previously predicted. Mortgage lending is also expected to be more buoyant than it had forecast, with lenders advancing a total of £310 billion during 2006, 9 per cent more than previously thought. The CML's re-evaluation came as a separate survey showed increasing confidence in the buy-to-let market. More than 90 per cent of landlords expect house prices to rise in the next 12 months, with 53 per cent expecting increases of between 3 per cent and 5 per cent. Article date: July 2006

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