House prices increased by 2.5 per cent – more than the average for the North West – in Eden in April, new figures show.
The rise contributes to the longer-term trend, which has seen property prices in the area grow by 15.8 per cent over the last year.
An imbalance between supply and demand for properties has remained the primary reason behind climbing house prices across the UK throughout the pandemic.
The need for larger deposits and constraints on accessing mortgages have pushed homeownership further out of reach for many first-time buyers – despite Government figures showing 50 per cent of renters would be able to afford the monthly payments.
In a recent major speech in Blackpool, Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced a comprehensive review of the mortgage market would take place in a bid to help more people onto the property ladder.
The average Eden house price in April was £260,440, Land Registry figures show – a 2.5 per cent increase on March.
Over the month, the picture was similar to that across the North West, where prices increased two per cent, and Eden was above the 1.1 per cent rise for the UK as a whole.
Over the last year, the average sale price of property in Eden rose by £36,000 – putting the area fifth among the North West’s 39 local authorities with price data for annual growth.
The highest annual growth in the region was in Burnley, where property prices increased on average by 18.6 per cent, to £119,000. At the other end of the scale, properties in Pendle gained just 2.7 per cent in value, giving an average price of £125,000.
First steps on the property ladder
First-time buyers in Eden spent an average of £213,000 on their property – £28,000 more than a year ago, and £56,000 more than in April 2017.
By comparison, former owner-occupiers paid £296,000 on average in April – 39 per cent more than first-time buyers.
Property types
Owners of terraced houses saw the biggest rise in property prices in Eden in April – they increased 2.6 per cent, to £201,926 on average. Over the last year, prices rose by 14.2 per cent.
Among other types of property:
Detached: up 2.5% monthly; up 17.7% annually; £378,762 average
Semi-detached: up 2.4% monthly; up 16.1% annually;
£246,363 averageFlats: up 2.1% monthly; up 11.4% annually; £140,498 average
How do property prices in Eden compare?
Buyers paid 24.7 per cent more than the average price in the North West (£209,000) in April for a property in Eden. Across the North West, property prices are high compared to those across the UK, where the average cost £281,000.
The most expensive properties in the North West were in Trafford – £347,000 on average, and 1.3 times as much as more than in Eden. Trafford properties cost 2.9 times as much as homes in Burnley (£119,000 average), at the other end of the scale.
The highest property prices across the UK were in Kensington and Chelsea.
