It's 2010 house price prediction time. Now, remember, we don't officially call 2009 until the Government releases their own official (completion-based) figures. But just because it's interesting, here's what people were saying this time last year.

The only consensus... house prices were going to plummet in 2009. And yet... Nationwide - this morning - called a gain, for what it's worth.

This year, there's not even that amount of consensus. It looks like this:

Citi ↑5% to 10%
Assetz ↑5%
Zoopla ↑2% to 3%
The Rat and Mouse ↑2%
National Association of Estate Agents NO CHANGE
Halifax NO CHANGE
Nationwide NO CHANGE
Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors ↓1% to 2%
Cluttons ↓3%
Savills ↓3%
Market Oracle ↓3.5%
Global Insight ↓5%
Ernst & Young ↓5%
Jones Lang LaSalle ↓7%
Capital Economics ↓10%
Armstrong Davis ↓10% to 15%

Council of Mortgage Lenders NO BETS

So... from a gain of 10% to a fall of 15%. Place your bets.

There's still the question of unknown unknowns in the economy. We've little money or appetite left for future bailouts, so anything approaching a crisis or emergency will surely be enough deliver a crunching knock-out blow to any residential property recovery. Counting that out, all eyes are on the unemployment figures. What we've seen of a property recovery has been thoroughly reliant on a shortage of stock. If unemployed leads to forced sales, the picture will look very different. Next year's also a general election and World Cup year. Don't expect much action in the first half of 2010... it will all happen from late summer onward. The Rat and Mouse was tempted to join Nationwide and Halifax with a NO CHANGE prediction, but we don't like to look boring. So - optimistic about unemployment - we've predicted a small gain, which we think will prove less than significant against general inflation. London - separately - may see something bigger... more like 8%.

What do you think?

That's it from us until 2010. Happy New Year to all our readers, and thanks so much for coming back again and again and making 2009 such a busy year. Thanks to all our advertisers, too... for keeping the blog alive. And remember - if you like what we do - be kind and nominate us here. We could nominate ourselves, but we haven't... and we'd like to think somebody else might.

Now go pop some champagne.

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