Price of a house 'is rising by £50 a day'

This means the value of the average home has increased by £50 a day.

A decade ago, the average home cost £60,000. Now it is worth £187,995 - and could soon hit the £200,000 mark.

The Halifax said house prices have risen faster in 2006 than had been predicted, jumping 1.7 per cent last month, nearly twice as much as November last year.

The bank's research will be of little comfort to those struggling to get a foot on the property ladder. But it will be a relief to homeowners worried by recent warnings that the boom was about to end.

Both investment bank Morgan Stanley and accountants PricewaterhouseCoopers have said a decade of rising house prices could be about to end. The Halifax did not share this view in its report yesterday, although it did warn that prices will not keep rising at their current rate.

Crippling increases in household bills, particularly energy costs, and the fact that pay rises are barely keeping up with inflation will dampen the enthusiasm of potential buyers.

Homeowners will get a painful reminder this month that interest rates, currently 5 per cent, are at their highest level for five years. Most banks and building societies raised their standard variable mortgage rate on December 1.

Martin Ellis, chief economist at the Halifax, said: "This slowdown in real earnings growth, higher interest rates and a squeeze on households' discretionary income due to higher utility bills, should temper housing demand."

Prices would not, however, stop rising altogether because the supply of homes is not matching demand.

Each year, about 200,000 new households are created, largely from divorce or immigration, yet only 160,000 new homes are built.

The National Association of Estate Agents predicted yesterday that house prices will rise 5 per cent next year.

Chief executive Peter Bolton King said many homeowners could struggle if interest rates rise significantly. He urged borrowers to be realistic about what they can afford.

b.barrow@dailymail.co.uk