New figures have revealed that house prices rose by 0.8% during January as values bounced back after steep falls amid the pre-Christmas snow disruption.

Leading mortgage giant, Halifax said the average cost of a home in Britain rose to £164,173 last month, but this followed a 1.3% plunge in December as snowed-in buyers stayed away from the market.

Its quarter-on-quarter measure of house prices - seen as a smoother indicator of market trends - registered a drop of 0.7%, according to the group.