UNITED Kingdom house prices fell the most in August since at least 2001 as economic growth stagnated and an end to the property slump is "still some way off," according to Hometrack Ltd.

The average cost of a residential property in England and Wales slipped 5.3 percent from a year earlier to 167,000 pounds (US$300,932), the London-based research company said in a statement yesterday. That's the biggest annual drop since the index started seven years ago. Prices fell 0.9 percent from July.

"A recovery in the housing slump, even back to zero monthly growth, is still some way off," said Richard Donnell, director of research at Hometrack. "It is confidence over the outlook for job prospects and the wider economy that is fundamental to any sustained turnaround."

The Nationwide Building Society and HBOS Plc reports have shown the UK has entered its steepest property market slump since the early 1990s.