House sales fall to one of lowest years on record

There were 869,000 homes sold, down from 880,000 in 2010 and continuing a three-year slump.

The lowest figure in recent years was in 2009, when just 848,000 homes were sold – roughly half the number of transactions before the financial crisis hit.

Sales could fall lower this year, as the Bank of England expects lenders to tighten credit criteria. The stamp duty holiday for first-time buyers also ends in spring.

Geoff Meen, professor of economics at the University of Reading, said: “If you have poor levels of credit availability for first-time buyers and people moving home, you are going to get low levels of sales taking place.”