House prices in this country will continue to fall in 2012, by at least 4-5 per cent according to mortgage lenders Realkredit, following on last year’s average drop of 6.6 per cent. Senior economist Christian Hilligsøe Heinig said the pessimistic forecast can hardly come as a surprise to anybody.

“The economy continues to struggle, fuelled by an escalation of the debt crisis, the stopping of popular short-term, low interest loans, and the political discussion about increased property taxes, all factors that have had a negative effect on the housing market,” he said. The price of an average, family bungalow dropped by DKK120,00 in value last year and has now fallen by half a million kroner since 2006 – bad news for sellers but good news for first-time buyers.

Mr Hilligsøe Heinig said: “Over the past few years it’s become considerably easier for young, first-time buyers to get a foothold on the property market. If you combine this with an increased need for housing it could indicate that we’re heading for a period of stabilisation.”