House prices leapt 4.1 per cent annually in January, according to the latest Halifax report on house prices.

This means that the average house price in the UK is now £240,054, having grown 0.4 per cent on a monthly basis.

Halifax adds that the quarterly change as of January 2020 was up by 2.3 per cent.

However, despite these eye-catching figures, the lender’s managing director, Russell Galley does his best to damp things down a bit: “The recent positive figures may actually represent activity that would ordinarily have been expected to take place last year, but was delayed by economic uncertainty,” he says.

He also sees demand exceeding supply for a while longer yet, and therefore, he says, “we still expect a moderate rate of house price growth over the course of the year.”

Galley also expresses some concern for first-time buyers, saying that accelerating rental costs will continue to make raising a deposit a “significant challenge.”

James Pendleton founder and director Lucy Pendleton says: “The Halifax is renowned for giving bigger growth readings and for two consecutive months now it hasn’t disappointed.

“There are so many buyers coming out of the ground, it’s like Watership Down meets Location, Location, Location.

“Confidence is key and it has been driven close to extinction since the Brexit vote but now it’s everywhere. Even on a basic human level, new clients are coming in smiling with an optimism that the industry has sincerely missed.”

Glenhawk chief executive Guy Harrington comments: “In the short term it’s full steam ahead, with consumer enthusiasm continuing following December’s general election result, supported by favourable fiscal policy.

“However, we are not out of the woods yet: the UK economy could see some turbulence later this year that will likely temper this return to growth, as we continue to negotiate our exit from the EU, whilst supply constraints will remain until we see meaningful government action.”

Garrington Property Finders managing director Jonathan Hopper also supplies a tempered point of view. He says: “This is a property market enjoying the first flush of spring. The freeze in transactions is thawing and pockets of brisk price growth are starting to bloom.

“The question now is whether this moment in the sun will turn into real momentum.

“As buyers and sellers recalibrate their expectations, sellers should beware of getting carried away – and must base their pricing on the market’s new fundamentals rather than just their expectations.