House prices near 2007 peak but sales down
04-02-2015
By Damian Fantato
The average house price in England and Wales is just £831 lower than their November 2007 peak, according to Land Registry figures.
The February data shows an annual price increase of 6.5 per cent, which takes the average property value in England and Wales to £180,252.
House prices are up 0.5 per cent since January.
London experienced the greatest increase in its average property value over the past 12 months with a movement of 13.1 per cent.
An average house in the capital - where there has been a 0.6 per cent rise since January - cost £463,872 in February.
The North East experienced the greatest monthly rise with a movement of 6.2 per cent where the average house price is now £102,061, which is the cheapest average in England and Wales.
But the latest figures show the number of completed house sales decreased by 11 per cent to 70,470 in December 2014 compared with 79,569 for the same month in 2013.
Adviser view
David Hollingworth, associate director of Bath-based London and Country Mortgages, said: “The volume of transactions is not back to where it was but these figures still point to the fact that we are still in a position where prices are high because of the imbalance in supply and demand.”