House prices down by 4bps

The annual change was a 0.8% increase while they were up a seasonally adjusted 0.4% on the month.

Nicholas Ayre, director of Home Fusion, said: “It says much about how bad things have got for such a relatively small uptick to seem like good news.

“The housing market is hanging on for dear life. It has been drifting listlessly for months, but now at least it is showing a flicker of hope.”

Tracy Kellett, managing director of BDI Home Finders, added: "Over the course of the next year we're likely to see a significant widening of the North/South divide due to the greater exposure of the North to the deterioration of the economy.

"The South, too, is likely to see a sharp slowdown in transactions as the economy enters a big freeze.”

Robert Gardner, chief economist at Nationwide, said: “Given the challenging economic backdrop, October's data is encouraging, but it doesn't fundamentally change the picture of a housing market that is treading water. Property transaction levels remain subdued, and prices essentially flat compared to last year.

“The outlook remains uncertain, but with the UK economic recovery expected to remain sluggish, house price growth is likely to remain soft in the period ahead, with prices moving sideways or drifting modestly lower over the next 12 months.”