The UK housing market is continuing to slow down with prices falling by 0.8% in November, according to figures from the Department of Communities and Local Government (DCLG).

The fall in prices brought the annual rate of house price inflation down from 11.3% to 9.5%, with the three-month figure slipping from 11.1% to 10.5%.

The UK's two biggest mortgage lenders - Nationwide and the Halifax - have both predicted house prices will remain flat in 2008 but there are fears that the housing market could fall.

The average cost of a house is now £218,330, the DCLG added.