Average House Prices Push Past Record £300,000
03-13-2016
Asking prices surge to a new record - £303,190 - in England and Wales as the North and West drive growth instead of London.
The average asking price for a house rose above £300,000 for the first time, according to the latest data from Rightmove.
Across England and Wales, house prices have been pushing the £300,000 mark for some time, with new monthly records being set regularly.
In February, the average asking price was £299,287, beating the previous record of £296,549, set in October last year.
Now, in March, the average price tag for a house is £303,190, up 7.6% from this time last year.
House prices have jumped by more than £100,000 over the last 10 years: in 2006, the average was £200,980.
New records were also set for asking prices in six regions in March:
- The North West - £177,437
- The West Midlands - £204,140
- The South West - £292,251
- The East of England - £326,836
- The South East - £399,680
- London - £644,045
But, unlike previous months, the engine of house-price growth was not London, but across the North and West of England, according to the property website.
Prices in London increased by 11% from the year before, but were flat from February.
Experts have pointed to a rise in stamp duty, which kicks in from April, as fuelling a rush on house-buying in recent months.
Rightmove's Miles Shipside said: "On average, 30,000 properties have come to market each week over the past month, up by 3% on this time last year, but there are insufficient numbers of newly listed properties in many parts of the country to meet demand.
"However, stronger growth in average earnings would not have helped the situation, as it would simply have enabled buyers to bid prices up even higher, chasing the limited supply of suitable housing stock."