New data released by the government showed that house prices for Australian capital city rose by 20 percent as at end March from a year ago.

Data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) showed that from the first quarter of 2010, house prices jumped by 4.8 percent, adding pressure on the Reserve Bank of Australia to raise interest rates when its board meets on Tuesday.

But some industry analysts warned that ABS data are prone to "overstating price swings," particularly when shifts in the make-up of market activity are noted.

Andrew Hanlon and Ellio Clarke, both Westpac economists, said they prefer to use the measure used by RP Data-Rismark series reports in determining house prices. The RP-Rismark noted a 12.7 percent rise in house prices over the year to March.

The data showed that house prices in Melbourne jumped an average of 28 percent, Sydney house prices rose 21 percent and Darwin prices expanded by over 17 percent.

On the average, all capital cities registered double-digit growth up to March.

Brisbane, Adelaide and Perth all reported double-digit rise in house prices at 12.1 percent, 10.8 percent and 15 percent growth respectively. House prices in Hobart posted a 14.1 percent rise while Canberra house prices rose 20.6 percent.

According to ABS, Sydney and Melbourne registered the strongest growth amongst the cities, especially from established houses with relatively high value. The two cities contributed the biggest growth in average prices for the eight capital cities.