The latest official UK property price statistics make interesting reading for investors puzzling over the best place to stake their cash.
The figures released by the Office of National Statistics (ONS) look at property price changes between 1995 and 2016.
The conclusion is despite monthly reports of rising prices, the most expensive properties cost more and the cheapest relatively less after a decade.
The cheapest place to buy is the mining village of Horden in County Durham, North East England.
There, a typical two-bedroom terraced house comes at just £24,500.
The most expensive are the metropolitan streets of Westminster, where the average home costs £2.92 million.
Price gap is widening
“Over the last 5 years the cheapest neighbourhoods have become cheaper whilst the most expensive neighbourhoods have become more expensive,” says the ONS.
“The house price gap for all neighbourhoods across England and Wales has widened by £60,000 since 2011.”
The report also highlights some housing facts about London:
- The capital accounts for 12% of all property sales in England
- Homes in London add a 10% surcharge of around £20,000 to average national prices
- The most expensive 10% of neighbourhoods are clustered in and around London
- One in three flat sales but one in 50 detached homes take place in London
The ratios of flat and detached house sales show that average prices for flats are higher because more are sold in the expensive capital and sales in London have less impact on the prices of larger detached homes, says the report.
Rents set to rise
Meanwhile, analysis for trade body the Council of Mortgage Lenders by peer-to-peer lender Landbay suggests fewer homes to rent on the market will push up rents by the end of 2017.
The trend is for rent rises to slow – the rate was 2.34% in 2015, which slipped to 1.12% last year.
But fewer landlords buying homes to rent and the impact of tax changes on landlords from April is leading to a dearth of homes.
“Tenants will unfortunately have no choice but to compete for limited stock, leading Landbay to predict that average rents will continue to rise above the level of inflation in 2017. With inflation forecast to hit 2.7%, this means rents rising by at least 3% over the year,” says the report.
