Confidence in the housing market soars to highest level in three years with prices forecast to rise by £10,000 this summer Study finds almost three-quarters expect house prices in their area to rise But confidence varied widely with no one surveyed in Northern Ireland predicting that prices will increase Confidence in the housing market among home owners has soared to its highest level in three years with prices forecast to rise by £10,000 this summer. Research by a property search website found almost three-quarters of home owners (74 per cent) expect house prices in their area to rise by September, with the predicted increase averaging 4.5 per cent. That would put an extra £10,152 on the average home worth £225,601. It is further evidence that the market is starting to 'turn a corner', Zoopla said. Both the proportion of people forecasting house price increase and the typical size of the anticipated increase are the highest figures recorded in around three years by the quarterly study, which began in 2009. Property search website Zoopla said almost three-quarters of home owners (74 per cent) expect house prices in their area to rise by September But confidence varied widely, and in stark contrast to the rest of the UK, no one surveyed in Northern Ireland predicted that prices will increase in their area by the end of the summer. One third of home owners living in Northern Ireland said that prices will be flat over the coming months and two-thirds predict falls. House prices in Northern Ireland have been declining sharply since the economic downturn, following a period of strong increases. Zoopla said that confidence in Northern Ireland has consistently been well below the rest of the UK for more than a year. Home owners in London, where the market has stood up relatively strongly amid high levels of interest from overseas buyers, were the most bullish. Nine out of 10 (89 per cent) people in the capital expect prices to rise by the end of the summer. Only one in 25 Londoners expects to see prices fall. Researchers found only 13 per cent of home owners now expect prices to fall over the coming months, compared with 19 per cent in December Confidence tended to be concentrated in southern England. It was higher than average in the South West, the South East and the East of England. Meanwhile, it was below average in the Midlands, Yorkshire and the Humber, the North West and the North East, as well as in Wales and Scotland. Zoopla said that across the country, there has been a strong uplift in housing market confidence since the start of 2013, with just 65 per cent of home owners predicting increases over the coming months at the end of last year. Only 13 per cent of home owners now expect prices to fall over the coming months, compared with 19 per cent in December. Here is how house price confidence varies across the UK according to Zoopla, with the percentage of people expecting price falls followed by the share predicting they will be flat and rise: :: Yorkshire and the Humber, 22%, 16%, 61% :: West Midlands, 18%, 17%, 65% :: South West, 11%, 13%, 76% :: South East, 8%, 12%, 81% :: Scotland, 21%, 14%, 65% :: Northern Ireland, 67%, 33%, 0% :: North West, 18%, 12%, 71% :: North East, 21%, 17%, 62% :: East of England, 10%, 14%, 76% :: East Midlands, 18%, 17%, 64% The website put some of the recent boost down to a package of measures announced by the Government in last month's Budget designed to give more people with small deposits a helping hand. From next year, the Help to Buy Scheme will offer Government guarantees from 2014 to support up to £130billion of higher loan-to-value (LTV) mortgages over three years. Mortgage availability has already increased sharply and lenders have been offering some of their lowest ever rates since the Government launched its Funding for Lending Scheme last August. The scheme gives lenders access to cheap finance in order that the benefits of this are passed on to borrowers. Lenders have recently reported signs that more first-time buyers are getting on the housing ladder, which should help to free up some stuck housing chains. Lawrence Hall, spokesman for Zoopla.co.uk, said: 'The housing market has seen a number of positive events in recent weeks including the Budget and growing confidence from home owners is a significant step towards a recovery. With first-time buyer lending gradually increasing and mortgages becoming more readily available, there is real belief that the property market is starting to turn a corner and finally drag itself out of the hole since the financial crisis. More than 4,000 people took part in the survey last month.