House worth winners and losers of the final yr revealed

Average house prices rose by 2.8 per cent in the 12 months to August this year, according to the latest figures from the Office of National Statistics.

But that may not be the case where you live, as local property markets can perform very differently. 

Estate agent Hamptons has crunched the ONS data and revealed that one Midlands market is the hottest in the UK when it comes to house price growth over the past year.  

Homeowners in North East Derbyshire have seen prices rise the most, going up by 9.7 per cent in the year to August. 

The typical property in the rural district, which includes towns on the outskirts of Chesterfield such Dronfield and Clay Cross, is now selling for £239,560, up from £218,340.

The district is perfect for people looking for more rural living but also offers short commuting distances to cities such as Sheffield, Derby and Nottingham. 

West Dunbartonshire in Scotland is the next best performing local authority, with average house prices having risen by 9.2 per cent there.

The typical property now sells for £140,080, up from £128,278 a year before. 

The area incorporates part of the Loch Lomond & The Trossachs National Park, but is also within commuting distance of Glasgow city centre.  

Aneisha Beveridge, head of research at Hamptons, says that areas on the outskirts of cities have benefitted the most from house price growth this year.

‘As mortgage rates have eased, buyers who remain priced out of cities have increasingly sought out slightly more affordable areas on the fringes,’ says Beveridge.

‘These moves are being driven by first-time buyers and second steppers, who found it difficult to buy when rates peaked last year. 

‘With many of these younger generations finding themselves working more from the office this year, they’re keen to have the best of all worlds – affordable housing with city amenities close by.’

Monmouthshire in Wales has also seen some dramatic house price growth, with the average home there having increased by 9 per cent year-on-year from £328,853 to £358,450.

Verona Frankish, chief executive of property website Yopa, put this down to it being the location of two bridges connecting England and Wales.

‘The property market in Monmouthshire is performing very strongly and there’s two key reasons for this – the Prince of Wales Bridge and the Severn Bridge,’ she says. 

‘Monmouthshire is home to the best that Wales has to offer from historic towns, a vibrant culture and outstanding areas of natural beauty. 

‘As a result, it offers an extremely high quality of life but with the additional bonus of quick and easy access to England, as well as the rest of Wales, making it extremely popular amongst both Welsh and English buyers.

‘Therefore, those looking to purchase in the area have a far stronger financial standing than most and this has allowed them to better weather the higher cost of buying in recent times, which in turn has kept the property market in Monmouthshire buoyant.’

Where have house prices gone down?  

Coastal areas across the South of England have seen some of the biggest falls in property prices in the year to August, according to Hamptons’ research. 

Eight of the 10 areas that recorded the biggest price falls over the last year are on the coast.

Says Beveridge: ‘Towns along the South coast – popular during Covid years – have seen price falls following a few years of strong growth.’

This includes Adur in West Sussex, Thanet in Kent and Portsmouth in Hampshire.  

However, prices in Rutland in the East Midlands saw the biggest falls, having dropped 7.8 per cent year-on-year from £405,750 to £374,160, wiping an average of £31,590 off the value of the typical home. 

The small county has only one train station, which may have dented its popularity among commuters since the pandemic.  

It’s a similar story for prices in Dover, where the average sold price has fallen by 6.4 per cent from £307,450 to £287,680. That equates to £19,770 wiped off the value of the average home.

Marc von Grundherr, director of Benham and Reeves estate agents, says the property market in Dover has suffered for number of reasons. 

‘The first reason is the scramble for coastal properties that materialised during the pandemic has simply subsided,’ says von Grundherr.

‘This has reduced the level of buyer demand being seen for such locations which, in turn, has caused house prices to cool.

Dover’s image has also suffered due to illegal migration, according to von Grundherr.

‘We’re seeing weekly headlines on the number of illegal migrants attempting to cross the channel, with over 800 arrivals in the last week or so alone,’ he adds.

‘The Channel Crossing is the UK’s gateway to Europe and whilst it’s not the only point of arrival for these migrants, it’s becoming synonymous with the issue, which is always going to deter buyers.

‘It’s also important to consider that despite the sharp reductions in property values, the average home in Dover is still just shy of the UK average. 

‘So it’s certainly not an affordable pocket of the market which means buyers are likely to be struggling in the face of higher borrowing costs.’

Torridge in North West Devon has also seen house prices fall by 5.7 per cent, according to Hamptons analysis – the equivalent of £17,200 of the average home in the district.