UK property asking prices rise again, close to new high - Rightmove

LONDON (Reuters) - Asking prices for British houses put on sale have extended a rise which began after Prime Minister Boris Johnson's election victory in December, property website Rightmove said on Monday.

Rightmove said average asking prices of property marketed between Jan. 12 and Feb. 8 rose by a monthly 0.8%, slower than a 2.3% jump in the previous Rightmove report but enough to take prices close to their all-time high.

The number of sales agreed was up by an annual 12.3% at the national level and by 26.4% in London.

"It's the first time for over a year that we have seen any sign of a return of seller confidence, albeit lagging behind the surge in numbers of early-bird buyers," Miles Shipside, Rightmove director, said.

There have been other signs of a quickening in the housing market since the Dec. 12 election. Last week the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors said house prices rose at the fastest pace in nearly three years in January.

(Writing by William Schomberg, editing by Andy Bruce)