House prices in England and Wales fell for an eighteenth successive month in February, figures show.

The Land Registry house price index (HPI) shows a monthly decline of two per cent in February, bringing the average property price down to £153,862, a price level not seen since September 2004.

The annual house price drop now stands at 16.5 per cent according to the Land Registry, with sales volumes remaining low in comparison to last year’s levels.

The average number of recorded property transactions per month was 38,830 between September and December 2008. In the same period in 2007, sales volumes averaged 95,679.

The number of properties sold in England and Wales for over £1 million decreased by 55 per cent between December 2007 and December 2008, from 421 to 188. In the capital, an annual house price change of -15.6 per cent was witnessed in February 2009. In Cardiff, this was -9.4 per cent.

Commenting on the HPI, Kesh Thukaram, managing director of smartlandlord.co.uk said: “These figures aren’t going to come as a surprise to anyone. But that doesn’t change the huge impact house price falls are having on the private rented sector. No landlord, whatever his position, can afford to ignore falling prices.

“If you have to option to gear up, it’s a fantastic time to get into the market and pick up some bargains. One landlord I spoke to recently said he had been waiting for a recession for years.”

All regions in England and Wales experienced a decrease in their average property values over the last 12 months. The region with the most significant annual price fall was the West Midlands with a movement of -17.7 per cent. Both the south-west and Yorkshire & The Humber experienced the smallest monthly falls with movements of -one per cent.

The Vale Of Glamorgan experienced the smallest annual price fall in February, with a movement of -4.4 per cent, while the Land Registry found Bridgend experiencing the greatest annual price fall with a movement of -19.7 per cent. However, it is important to note the very low sales volumes involved.

In London, the borough with the smallest annual price fall is Barnet, with a movement of -10.3 per cent. Islington experienced a movement of 1.2 per cent, making it the borough with the highest monthly increase.