House prices fall in 10 out of 13 UK regions

Average UK house prices fell by 0.5 per cent between July and September

Latest figures from Nationwide show that house prices in England dropped 0.3 per cent, those in Scotland by 4 per cent, and in Wales by 4.7 per cent. On an annual basis, prices in Northern Ireland were down 9.3 per cent, but Northern Ireland is also now the most affordable region on a house price to earnings ratio basis.

In England, London was the best performing area, with prices up 2.1 per cent compared to the same period last year. In Yorkshire & Humberside and the North East prices were down 2 per cent.

Edinburgh regained its position as Scotland’s most expensive city, although Aberdeen remains close behind. Meanwhile Southern Scotland, which includes Ayrshire and the Borders, saw a 10 per cent year-on-year fall to become the least expensive area of Scotland.

In London, Wandsworth saw the strongest growth, with prices up 8 per cent year-on-year, while Hounslow saw the weakest growth, with a 3 per cent fall. Westminster remains the most expensive borough with average prices around £730,000, nearly four times higher than those in Barking & Dagenham, the cheapest borough.

Overall, the five best performing towns and cities outside London were Brighton, Nottingham, Aberdeen, Cambridge and Liverpool. The worst five were Belfast, Manchester, Bradford, York and Carlisle.