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New figures showed a 1.2% rise in property asking prices in the last month as New Year sellers defied the market gloom.
However, property website Rightmove warned that the increase was due to estate agents giving bullish valuations as they try to win new business, combined with false optimism on the part of sellers.
The annual rate at which house prices are falling reached a new record of 9.1% for the year to February 7, up from 7.3% a month earlier, despite the rise in asking prices.
The average asking price for homes in England and Wales is now £216,163, after the rise of £2,593 seen during the four weeks to February 7.
Rightmove said asking prices often jump at this time of year, citing an increase of 3.2% during at the start of 2008.
Miles Shipside, the firm's commercial director, said: "While sellers have been more conservative in their New Year bullishness than last year, they may regret not pricing more aggressively to capitalise on the spring surge in buyer interest.
"Sales are being achieved at around 25% below peak prices, yet new sellers coming to the market are starting out asking an average of only 10% less."
He added that the group expected to report further falls in asking prices in the coming months, and is forecasting a 10% drop during the whole of 2009.
Earlier this month, Britain's biggest mortgage lender Halifax said house prices rose by 1.9% during January, although economists were quick to warn people not to read too much into a single month's data.
Rightmove said the number of properties coming on to the market remained at record lows, with only 75,140 people putting their home up for sale during the four weeks - a 45% drop compared with the same period last year.
It said this lack of fresh stock led to some agents suggesting more optimistic initial asking prices in a bid to be given the property to market.
Mr Shipside said: "This is a traditional tactic employed at the beginning of every year to attract fresh stock, but is a short-sighted move for both parties in a falling market."
Copyright © Press Association 2009
