A Reuters poll of economists had pointed to a 0.3% drop on
the month.
House prices were 1.6% higher than a year ago.
Halifax said the latest figures suggested relative stability
in the housing market at the start of 2023 after Truss's
unfunded - and short-lived - tax cut plans caused borrowing
rates to surge in the autumn.
Since then, the Bank of England has extended its run of
interest rate hikes although there are signs that it is coming
close to reaching a peak for Bank Rate.
"While the path for interest rates is uncertain, mortgage
costs are unlikely to get significantly cheaper in the
short-term and the performance of the housing market will
continue to reflect these new norms of higher borrowing costs
and lower demand," Kim Kinnaird, a director at Halifax
Mortgages, said.
"Therefore, we still expect to see a continued slowdown
through this year."
The figures from Halifax contrasted with those of rival
lender Nationwide which said last week that its measure of house
prices dropped by 0.8% in March from February, and were down by
the most in annual terms since 2009, falling by 3.1%.
But other indicators, such as the BoE's mortgage approvals
data and a measure of asking prices compiled by property company
Rightmove, have suggested the market has become more stable in
recent months.
(Reporting by William Schomberg; Editing by Kate Holton)
(Adds details from Halifax data and background)
LONDON, April 6 (Reuters) - British house prices rose
for a third month in a row in March, representing a further
calming of the market after the turmoil sparked by former Prime
Minister Liz Truss's "mini-budget" last September, data from
mortgage lender Halifax showed.
House prices rose by 0.8% in month-on-month terms, Halifax
said on Thursday, the second-strongest gain since June last year
after February's 1.2% increase.
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