Speculative buyers and sellers are staying out of the housing market and look set to do so until the new year, the chief executive of estate agency chain Haart has said.

Paul Smith said that Nationwide''s house price report issued this week indicated, the market is slowing and prices are beginning to come off the boil after years of sharp climbs.

He added that a traditional seasonal slowdown had also played a role but added: "As we predicted, this has been brought forward slightly as a combined result of the interest rate rises, lending uncertainty and the home information packs confusion, all of which have combined to skew the market."

However, he pointed out that people who are "seriously looking to move have not been put off" and claimed that a lack of available properties would ensure that "prices in some areas will remain strong".

The recent credit crunch and the Northern Rock crisis are also reported to have played a role in the market slowdown, with property broker Nick Collins telling Bloomberg that the banking drama had "undermined people''s confidence".

"The market''s not as frothy and competitive as it was," he added.