UK house prices rose in April at the slowest pace in three months as the supply of homes for sale picked up, Hometrack said.

The average cost of a home in England and Wales increased 0.2% from March to £158,400 ($243,000), the London- based property researcher said in an e-mailed statement today. Prices rose 1.8% from a year earlier.

The property market’s momentum is waning as more Britons lose their jobs in the aftermath of the worst recession on record. Political campaigning before the May 6 election is also undermining confidence as squabbles on how to tackle the widest budget deficit since World War II unsettles homebuyers, according to Hometrack.