Blackburn has seen the biggest increase in house prices in the last year with average growth of 16.4%, according to the latest data from Your Move.
In a big turnaround the North West of England is now at the top of the league for regional house price growth, revealed the estate agent.
Just eight months ago it had recorded one of the lowest rises in prices but is now showing strong growth across all areas of the market.
Meanwhile Wandsworth, traditionally one of London’s most buoyant boroughs for house prices, experienced a slump over the last year. The average property price in the area fell by 14.9% from £805,460 to £685,567.
In fact, prices across the capital as a whole fell in January by 0.8% during the month and by 2.6% annually. This is the biggest decline since August 2009, said Your Move.
Monthly figures, across the UK, show a small rise in prices, however. In February average house prices rose by 0.5% – the biggest increase in five months.
The East Midlands, South West and Wales were described by Your Move as ‘robust’, having recorded peak average prices in this month.
But London, the South East and North East had all seen prices fall on an annual basis.
Oliver Blake, managing director of Your Move and Reeds Rains estate agents, said: “When examining the bigger picture, house prices are steadily balancing the needs of house buyers which is welcome news for those looking to take their first steps onto the property ladder.
“However, the housing supply in the UK isn’t meeting demand and there is still a bottleneck of available properties. The industry needs to work together to provide a long-term solution to increase movement within the market.
“By building more homes and introducing more initiatives for each stage of the property lifecycle we should start to see more choice for first-time, second steppers and last-time buyers.”
