The housing market got off to a strong start in 2017, with prices growing 0.3% month-on-month in January, according to Your Move’s latest house price index.
These latest results push the average price of a home in England and Wales up by £1,029 to reach £300,169 – a new high in the market, and the rst fresh peak since March last year.
It leaves prices in January almost £10,000 higher than in the same month in 2016, when the average was £291,165. Prices have now doubled since they topped £150,000 in November 2002 – despite the slump following the nancial crisis.
Activity in January was also higher than usual for the time of year, with 60,000 transactions. This was lower than the 62,059 in January 2016, which also started strongly, but up by more than 2,000 on 2015.
A strong finish to the year means that London rises off the bottom of the table for house price growth over 2016. Instead, the North East takes its place; with prices dropping 0.3% in December to finish effectively at over the last 12 months.
Every other region of the country has seen prices grow in the last 12 months, led still by the East, where the average price edged up a further 0.1% in the month to finish 7.1% up on last December. The region was supported by strong growth in the last year in Luton (up 10.1%), Thurrock (up 11%) and Southend-on-Sea (up 14.7%), which also saw among the strongest monthly growth at 2.9%.
Other top performing regions included the South East, increasing 4.9% annually with double digit growth in Medway and Portsmouth; and the East Midlands, where Rutland saw growth of 12.4% over the year and the region as a whole increased by 4.5%.
The strongest annual growth in a unitary authority, however, was in Kingston upon Hull, 2017 City of Culture. Prices in Hull grew 1.5% in December to finish up 16.8% on the year, with the average house price rising by £19,072 to £132,590. That performance wasn’t matched by Yorks & Humber more widely, though. Prices in the region grew just 2.3% over the year.
Oliver Blake, managing director of Your Move and Reeds Rains estate agents, said: “It’s been a confident start to the year from the housing market.
“Following a strong December, the performance in January shows a market whose resilience continues to defy the doubters.”