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The news may push property investors to consider taking up stock market investment as a way of earning extra money.
A report by the building society found that house prices fell by 1.8 per cent in February. The fall takes the average price of house in the UK to £147,750.
Recently, Halifax reported that house prices increased by 1.6 per cent last month.
Fionnuala Earley, Nationwide's chief economist, commented: "Further cuts in rates will be welcome in the housing market, but the economic conditions that require them will mean that there is unlikely to be a turnaround in the housing market in 2009."
New figures from Findaproperty.com have also suggested that the boom in buy-to-let properties has also come to an end.
