House prices continued to fall in January as more properties were left unsold, a new survey has found.

According to the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (Rics), the number of its members who reported a fall in house prices last month was 54.7 per cent higher than the number of who reported a rise.

Surveyors also said that the number of unsold properties on their books has increased by 40 per cent since September 2007, the month the Bank of England was forced to grant an emergency loan to Northern Rock as a result of turmoil on world financial markets.

Currently, the average surveyor has 85 unsold properties, the highest level for nine years.

Jeremy Leaf, a spokesman for Rics, said that a "lack of demand and confidence in the housing market" as well as the tighter lending conditions being imposed on people seeking a mortgage are some of the factors behind the cool down in the market.

"Agents are finding it difficult to market properties to an audience which has decided to watch the current economic theatre from the wings," he said.