LONDON (AP) — Average house prices in Britain fell 3.6 percent in September from a month earlier, the country's biggest mortgage lender said yesterday, although analysts believe the market isn't that weak. Halifax said its more accurate three-month average showed house prices dropping 0.9 percent.

"Volatility of the month on month measure has increased due to the low transaction levels across the market; this underlines the difficulty of getting a clear reading on the current state of the housing market," said Halifax economist Martin Ellis.