House prices fell for the second consecutive month in September, taking the annual rate of increase below inflation for the first time in more than nine years according to figures from the Nationwide. The building society said that the average price of a home fell 0.2% on the month as rises in the North failed to outweigh falls in the South. Nationwide said the £793 fall in the average value took the annual rate down to 1.8% from August’s 2.3%. Its weakest since May 1996 and below the government’s preferred inflation rate of 2.4%. But Fionnuala Earley, Nationwide’s group economist, said: “Experience so far shows no evidence of an imminent crash. Instead the housing market has remained fairly robust and as house prices have softened buyers have showed renewed interest in the market.” Figures from the Bank of England backed this up by showing that the number of new mortgages approved last month hit a 14 month high last month. (Independent)