Agreed house prices edged up in October as buyers demonstrated continued confidence in the housing market, a new report has suggested.

Estate agency Your Move said that the average price agreed on properties in October was £180,353, an increase of 1.2 per cent on September''s average of £178,538.

David Newnes, the managing director of Your Move, said that while house prices had "been levelling out over the autumn", prices were still creeping upwards.

"There has been speculation that we will see a downturn in the property market, but Your Move''s data clearly shows consumer expectations for the property market remain optimistic."

The firm added that fears on the future of the market sparked by the credit crunch have begun to recede and that the shortage of homes in the UK is "keeping the property market buoyant".

The assertion supports that of Bernard Clarke, a spokesman for the Council of Mortgage Lenders, who commented: "The housing market continues to be underpinned by consumer demand for owner occupation, strong aspirations for owner occupation and shortage of supply."