However, its figures reveal that all of the growth occured in the first half of the year, with prices freezing in the latter half of 2012.
Prices rose most sharply in Greater London at 9.9% between November 2011 and November 2012, bringing the average house price to £430,120, higher than at the housing bubble peak.
The South East, North and East Anglia also saw rises of over 2%. However, prices fell in the North West and Wales.
Despite the change in price, sales remained weak – the number of sales was estimated to have dropped by 4,165 on the previous year and at 657,000, calculated to be at 63% of the long-term average number of transactions per year.
Richard Sexton, director of LSL subsidiary e.surv, said: “Taken as a whole, 2012 was the most encouraging year for the housing market since the financial crisis. Prices rose by more than £7,000 over the course of the year, and 2013 looks set to be a slightly easier year for mortgage lenders, which should help improve the availability of finance for house purchases and help boost sales figures.
“But 2012 was a year of two halves. In the first half of the year prices rose 3.2%, but the brakes were slammed down in the second half and brought prices to a complete standstill. The Olympics reduced sales activity in the late summer, and mortgage lending to first-time buyers also weakened over the autumn.
“It was also a year of geographic splits. The market in some northern regions remained in a state of near-paralysis thanks to the debilitating combination of public sector cuts, weak private sector growth, and a lack of mortgages for less affluent borrowers.
“So it’s still too early to say if the market is sailing out of the financial storm just yet.”
