A survey of homeowners has discovered that 80% are expecting property values to increase over this year by 4.8%, the highest level for three years, according to Zoopla. Zoopla’s poll of 5,863 homeowners found that 4 out of 5 now expect prices to rise in their area before the end of the year, the biggest proportion since the second quarter of 2010. Just 7% of homeowners across the UK expect house prices will fall between now and Christmas, down from 13% just three month ago. Lawrence Hall, of Zoopla, said: “Homeowner confidence is crucial to a healthy housing market. Without it sales activity tends to be low, which jams the brakes on the entire property chain. The trials and tribulations of the financial crisis drained confidence out of the market, but it is making a strong comeback. With mortgage availability improving considerably in the last few months, the first-time buyer market is moving again and revving the engine of the whole housing market. And the improvement in confidence isn’t limited to just London and the South East, it’s sweeping across the whole of the UK.” UK homeowners are predicting property prices will increase by an average of 4.8% over the next six months, a rise from 4.4% three months ago, whilst there is also more confidence about mortgage availability, with 26% of those surveyed believing that attaining a mortgage is easier now compared to three months ago. Homeowners in the West Midlands have shown the biggest increase in confidence, with 78% of homeowners now predicting house prices will climb in their region over the next six months compared to only 63% three months ago. Londoners remain the most confident, with 93% of homeowners in the capital expecting property values to rise in the next 6 months. However homeowners in Wales are the most pessimistic with 13% still predicting a fall in property values by the end of the year.