Some people have asked why the land registry's figures are so different to the Natrionwide's

Why would you believe the governments stats on house prices bearing in mind how they fiddle inflation stats!!!

People need to stop clutching at straws. Look in to things properly and you will be shocked

Richard, Suffolk,

for those who blame the credit crunch - wake up, lending is tight because banks are terrified about getting involved even more with a falling asset that is so overvalued.

it amazes me that people can not see that this is the bursting of a bubble. prices will go back to 2003 levels minimum.

howard, london,

I have just walked around my house and garden and all seem to be the same size. Therefore I have no problems with values dropping.
Quite the opposite, as a parent wth three children in their teens I am delighted that prices are falling and they may, one day, be able to afford their own home.

Gareth Jones, Walsall, UK

I hope that electricity, gas, petrol and food prices will experience 'worst' price falls sometime in the forseeable future.

Paul, Coventry,

the question to answer is why Nationwide's data is so divergent from Land Registry (which includes cash sales). Also Land Reg house price averages particularly in the North are much lower in value, whereas the Nationwide reported prices are much higher

Mac, UK, UK

The English love a good moan eh. Read between the lines, things are not going to get much worse as the downturn is slowing. But by all means, keep reading the headlines and panicing. The rest of us will drink a few less pints a week and get on with life.

Glenn, London, UK

Spot on Peter. Dissapointed a paper like the Times writes these shock headlines. Everyone said we needed a correction in prices, were getting them. Personally, I dont care what my house is valued at, I live here. Once first time buyers can buy, the prices will creep up, and we will start over again

Danny Wright, Upwell,, Cambridgeshire

House prices have been unsustainable for a few years now. This is only the start of it....
Considering first time buyers are now well and truly out of the picture the chain has collapsed.. this, along with everything else happening with the economy, inflation, an increase in interest rates...

james, norwich,

A government can provide benign economic conditions - low inflation, low unemployment, low interest rates - but what we then choose to do in those circumstances, which in the last decade has been to collectively bid up the value of the UK's bricks & mortar, is up to us as individuals.

Simon Stock, Biggleswade, United Kingdom

Why use an emotive word like "worst" to describe the price fall. Those of us who would like to buy but currently cannot might think the opposite. A simple "biggest" would be more accurate and there are plenty of us out here who will be glad to see realism return to the market.

Steve, Birchington, England

phil A, Headley, UK is absolutely correct.

Blair and Brown have spent a decade tricking the shortsighted in the UK to a life of debt, and have the cheek to call it a 'feelgood factor'! I'm amazed that the UK fell for it,
New Labour? Worst Govt term ever, the next decade will prove it.

Beth K, Sheffield, UK

Perfect. Crash away.

Unsustainable price increases were obvious, the price:salary ratio insane, anyone who took out a 100% loan in the past few years can't complain (perhaps you are certifiable!). Many were prepared to take the upside of their risk decision, but don't like the down. Live with it!

Laura Roberts, London, UK

Phil and Peter spot on. We needed a correction, we are getting it. Not too worried how much my house is worth, as I'll be here a while. I'm 32 now, and lucky I bought in 2000. Give the younger people a chance, instead of panicking about what an 18 year old estate agent says your house is worth!

Danny Wright, Upwell,, Cambridgeshire

Prices may be falling but Many people have sufficiant funds to purchase now but they are holding off...... as time goes on these people will purchase, keeping the prices up.
you do have to think regionally, nr Heathrow the prices are holding tightish ....damn shame really as i want a house ;{

Richi , Heathrow ,

Property crashes do not happen overnight but will drip away slowly each month. Those of you who think they are not affected if you do not have 75% LTV you will move over to the standard varaible rate which will force many into selling. This DEBT crunch affects business which leads to unemployment.

Joe, London,

We are going to have 50% falls from peak as banks reduce their lending back down to traditional levels. No one is going to provide mortgages anymore for these overpriced properties especially since lenders are being increasingly burnt by their previous loose loans.

Gavin, London,

"House price falls ease real inflation levels".
"House price falls give glimmer of hope to FTBs"
"House price falls buck overheated housing market"
Let us think positively

barry wiseman, bromley, kent

The amazing thing is that £4Bn has been invested in mortgages in this falliing market! A fall of 24% in house prices in the next 2 years is ACTUALLY a real fall of 34% when inflation is factored in (annuallly 5%). 1/3 off the value of your biggest investment in 2 years.......

Time to sell

JimH, Stockhlom, Sweden

Fearmongering. According to TV this morning the fall in prices is slowing down. So who is telling the truth?

judy, Liverpool, England

Peter,
The YOY rate has gone up by about 1.9% with mom up 0.9%. What you are missing is that the average price rose from April 2007 to May 2007 so the comparison is tougher. The monthly rate is thus misleading and the statement in the article is correct.

Russell, Benfleet, England

There are no more 125% or 100% mortgages to be had banks and BS's are demanding 10%,20% or 25% deposits from anyone who want's a mortgage. This is'nt new it simple means you now have to save for your deposit to obtain a mortgage as a society that was weaned easy credit this has come as a big shock.

Dave, Mold, UK

25-40% fall in real terms. Factor in REAL inflation at 10% or more and your house in 3 years time is worth 70% less than its value today. VERY glad that I offloaded my BTL portfolio last year.

Clint, Brighton, UK

Its all amount the lack of credit. Reduced credit = reduced no. of buyers, this leads to a reduced no. of transactions and therefore a temp fall in prices. Bottom line is that if you don't need to sell you won't. While prices might fall 1st time buyers can't buy as there is NO LENDING.

Joe, London,

Two days ago Land Registry figures, based on actual sales, showed no movement +/- in May 08 when according to Nationwide they fell 2.5%. How can one reconcile this divergence? Do the building societies ever correct their data with real data or are they always guess work on guess work?

Peter, London, UK

I agree with Graham Wharton. Add accountants / auditors to the list of failures too. How on earth did they sign off banks annual accounts as a "true and fair view" of the banks financial situation??

The bankers have made the accountants look pretty foolish.

Alistair Nicholls, Manchester, UK

This is great news,this bubble should never have been let to get out of control,now things are going to get so much worse and most of us apart from the rich are going to suffer for a long time to come, were knackered simple as that, a situation like this should never be allowed to be created again!!

john, morayshire,

The more prices fall the more the banks will want larger deposits and charge higher rates to cover their downsides. People simply haven't saved the money for this and have not had wage inflation to ensure comfortable repayments, especially if they jump.

So house prices fall further etc etc....

Nick, london, k

House prices must fall, and the quicker the better so that stability (rather than rapid inflation) can then return. Why the perjorative "worst" in the headline. Its neither better nor worse, its reality.

Dave, Liverpool, UK

The 'worst' since 1992?

Depends on whether you are buying or selling I would have thought.

If petrol prices were to fall dramatically tomorrow (as if!) would you report 'price falls worst since' [whenever]?

The credit fuelled bubble has burst - that's just the market in action.

Hard, ain't it?

Anthony Price, Truro, Cornwall, UK

There is an undeniable "fall" in prices but those who don't need to sell (and that's the vast majority) are simply staying put so the "fall" in theory isn't passed through to practice. Try Offering 10% below , no deal. Once finance become available again it will fly back up I FEAR YOUR RIGHT ;[

Richi , Heathrow ,

People have to realise that talking up house prices over the past 5 or 6 years has created this problem. High prices are a disaster for all home owners who simply want somewhere to live. High prices are unsustainable when compared to income and will fall even further. Hold tight, it will be painful.

Alan, London, England

The house price falls are GREAT news. It had to come and sooner rather than later. We have seen prices rise threefold in only 10 years. Totally ridiculous!

PedroTam, london, UK

The doom mongers love this. What is the moral of the story? Pay cash for everything like in the war??

Only reason this is happening is banks are making it happen. Why is the government letting them get away with it.?

Media hype and bad bank managers= disaster.

Rich, HFD,

Fantastic. 20 years ago the average house cost 3x the average salary. Now the average house costs 9x the average salary. Keep the values falling! (My fiance and I are hoping to buy a home for the first time in the next 2-3 years.)

Stephanie, Bristol,

"Nationwide said the slowdown was still being driven by the lack of cheap mortgages."

So over-inflated prices have nothing to do with it? For how much longer will the mortgage lenders, estate agents and builders remain in denial? We have a huge boom which must have an equally huge bust!

Simon, Bristol, UK

"Annual house price falls worst since 1992"

I object to the seemingly default position that this is bad news. How about "Annual house price falls biggest since 1992"? It's not bad news for me.

Stuart, London,

House prices have risen exponentially like a gathering snowball over the last few years... It was only a matter of time before the bubble burst. A severe and sharp correction will now take place - which will only be delayed by sellers / investers doing their greedy best to uphold their asking prices

Chris, Newcastle,

Why all this doom & gloom everywhere about it? It should be GOOD, GOOD, GOOD news, just as it would be if the oil price fell.

It willl help FTB'ers, mobility and those who want to upgrade. Lets' once & for all get rid of the mindset that hyper HPI is good. It's no better than any oher inflation.

Pete B, Malvern, UK

There is an undeniable "fall" in prices but those who don't need to sell (and that's the vast majority) are simply staying put so the "fall" in theory isn't passed through to practice. Try Offering 10% below asking and all you have is no deal. Once finance become available again it will fly back up

Jim, Blackpool,

Phil, Ascot. It is people who invest in the housing market, rather than buying somewhere to live, who are a major part of the problem of house price inflation.

David Leslie, Perth, Scoyland

The banks were happy to lend at 5% p.a. to people buying houses that were rising at 10% p.a. The banks money was driving the market up, Now the tap has been turned of the market will return to what people can truly afford.Could be 35-40% down and a few years before the madness starts again.

John B, Weybridge, England

Instead of heaping all the blame on the current government let us not forget who started the ball rolling in the first place The British public bought wholeheartedly into Thatchers dream of everyone 'owning' their own little castle. We did crime now we do the time and must partake of our own ruin

C.S-U, Edinburgh, UK

Q: What do you call prices dropping at an annual rate of 6.3%?

A: a good start...

We have a very long way to go yet. Get used to prices being compared to a very long time ago in order to find a positive number. "prices may be down by loads, but up a lot compared to the doomsday valuation"

Mike, Tauranga, New Zealand

roarke - its ok for you to say that - some people need 5 times salary mortgages and move in for free schemes. Stop so many people buying 2nd homes and buy to let. Do not punish the people trying to get on the first rung of the property ladder.

Luke, Canterbury, England

Interest rate will probably peak in Dec 08. Lenders will restrict credit further. House prices will fall further however there will be a limit to how much they fall because either people won't to make a loss on their property so they will just stay put and 1st time buyers will continue to rent.

Rupert, London, England

The drop is less in June because this is traditionally the best month of the year for the market. A drop in June of any size is viewed very badly. Cash is being sucked out of the economy by lenders requiring bigger deposits. Don't borrow money from your parents or anyone to get into the market!

chris, brighton,

Re quote from Martin Seymour, Estate Agent.

Isn't the 'it's structural' the argument they were using to explain the reason house prices had risen so much, and why they would never go down, just a few months ago?

Alex, Salisbury, UK

So What? Why this media frenzy over falling prices? Did any one complain when they were rising more than 10% a year? No harm done if people lose some of their paper profits and live life in the real world.

P Davis, manchester,

How does the Nationwide calculate the fall? The amount is meaningless unless we know how it's calculated. Can someone enlighten me please?

Adam, Paris,

This is the lead article in the Business section & that's symptomatic of the problem. Property should be seen as an essential, like food, sleep, warmth - not as a commodity for speculators, a luxury, or a lifestyle choice.

There's nothing gloomy about cheap houses, if you currently have no home.

Dave Hall, Stafford, UK

Slowing in rate of house falls, mortgage rates starting to come down again, some savvy housebuilders already starting to look at land purchases - sorry but prices are not going to fall as far as the doom mongers predict particularly in the south east. The demographics won't allow it.

Iain, Forest Row, England

So there not falling as quick as they was..... hmmm good news then.

Alan, Warwickshire, warks

The key to get the housing market moving again is sentiment.
If there is no confidence in the market people understandably don't want to take a risk and neither do the banks so they don't lend. Thus you have paralysis. For all the doom and the gloom things will come back again. They always do.

Rupert, London, England

Further evidence if needed that disaster always strikes in investing when hope replaces arithmetic.

anthony, london, england

The last housing downturn had negative growth for 6 years from 90 to 96. stats from (HM Treasury databank )
I think it will be 2013 before I would invest in residential property again.

Phil, Ascot, England

Is the Nationwide fiddling its Seasonal Adjustment formula? Something doesn't quite add up. Drop should be more.

Bruce Robertson, Brighton, UK

Until first timers can buy a property with £10,000 deposit and max 3 times income , prices will keep falling. I think prices are falling much faster than this article indicates. A long, long way to go. Who's going to buy a house today, knowing it;'ll be worth £50,000 less in 2 years time ???

Roarke, Wembley, UK

The recent boom was bigger and more out of control than any other so am predicting the correction to be just as spectacular or even bigger. Ms Flint, the housing minister and Ms Barker, the MPC's so-called property gure have been very quiet of late - I wonder why?

cww, Ipswich, Suffolk, UK,

I think the question we need to ask is why we have let the prices go up to 2 to 6 times median salary. When the prices touched 5 the FSA should have stepped in. Instead we broadcasted property shows that promised bick bucks to everyone. Well now it's time to pay I guess

Ivan, Newcastle, UK

Raise interest rates!!!!

Sunny Patel, Coventry,

"Annual house price falls worst since 1992" - but given the actual monthly figures, the headline could have been "House price falls about to come to an end."

Tim Fellows, Worcester, UK

To all those who gloated over how much their house was going up in value and tried to presure me and my partner into 'getting on the ladder at any cost' before it was too late, with their delusional mantras, 'houses prices always up', rent is dead money.. how's that soft landing working out for ya?

Tim, London, UK

House prices are dropping. Mortgage fees are rising. Deposits are rising. Actual interest rates are rising. Let's continue the graph for a while. Aaah.

By 2010 the deposit will be the house price. Simple.

Alfred, London, UK

There is a complete disconnection between the salaries people earn and house prices. To get back to a more normal times house prices will fall 40% and maybe more as the world readjusts to a more prudent lending regime.

Chris, C. Norton,

We should have developed a strong regulatory framework that would have kept the herd like mentality of the City under control. The FSA , Bank of England and Government failed miserably and we all now paying the price. Bankers have no ethics, its all about money and bonuses.

Graham Wharton, St. Albans, uk

Houses are now unaffordable, particularly at the bottom rung of the ladder. Banks won't finance cheap debt so prices will fall. Pensions are in shortfall so mid-50s owners may have to cash out. The primary source of downward pressure over the next 5 to 10 years. A long period of stagnation!

Michael, UK,

Q. Who incessantly boasted there would be 'No booms, no busts' ?

A. One. G. Brown; the architect of debt-ridden Britain and inventor of the ineffectual FSA

RM, London, England

Let's hope it continues. I earn a nice salary for the region, but I stil can't afford to buy a house.

Mind you, over here student landlords buy all the decent houses, so I doubt house prices will fall. So far they haven't.

MMM, Lancaster, UK

50% fall before it is all over.

Alex, Salisbury, UK

I fail to understand everyone's surprise here- houses are not affordable, and lunatic lending allowed the prices to balloon. The Brown government claimed they induced economic wonder for us all.. and we sleepwalked into this. We have to get back to economic reality.... not "easy" money. 1992?

phil A, Headley, UK

No more "boom and bust" boasted Gordy. Just shows the empty tendentious thinking.

Howard, Chester,

The Headline "Annual house price falls accelerate sharply" of the article is then rapidly contradicted with "However, the monthly figures showed a slowing in the rate of price falls".

Peter Ringrose, London,

It was all about credit and now there is not any or if there is it is at a penal rate. Memories are very short.

Aly-Khan Satchu, Nairobi,