Revealed! The property pockets defying cooling house prices

House prices may be cooling but some local markets are actually heating up with property values increasing by up to 10%, research suggests.

Upfront information provider Moverly analysed house price changes in Britain between January and May 2023 on both a regional and local authority (LA) level using data from the Land Registry. 

Average house price declined by 0.6% during this period.

The only region to see prices rise during this time was Scotland where the average increased by 4.7%.

 All other British regions saw small declines, with the most significant drop of 2.5% recorded in the East of England. 

However, price change analysis on a local authority level shows a lot more movement, both up and down.

The biggest decline has been seen in North East Derbyshire where prices fell by -12.7% with the Shetland Islands (-11.6%), Rossendale (-9.9%), and West Lindsey (-9.2%) also recorded significant drops. 

But on the other hand, East Lothian in Scotland experienced impressive price growth of 10% over the five-month period, followed by Renfrewshire (8.1%), East Cambridgeshire (6.7%), and Uttlesford (5%).

Oxford (4.6%), South Hams (4.5%), Aberdeen (4.4%), Winchester (4.3%), North Hertfordshire (4.1%) and Monmouthshire (3.8%) also rank within the top 10 areas with the highest rates of house price growth so far this year. 

Ed Molyneux, co-founder of Moverly, said: “Britain’s national picture, which is the one that makes up the majority of news headlines, shows a largely stubborn housing market, somehow resisting any kind of price dissemination as a result of wider economic struggles. Although, it’s fair to say that the positive price growth of the pandemic boom has also now vanished. 

“But the nation’s market is made up of many local markets and taking the time to analyse this data shows that prices have been anything but static. In one corner of Britain we see 13% drops, while in another it’s 10% growth.

“This is why, instead of being influenced by the national picture, buyers and sellers are wise to consider the conditions of their own local market when deciding whether now is the time to buy or sell.”