House prices still on the increase in the North West

House prices in Manchester increased by 7.1 per cent last year according to Hometrack.

Regional cities such as Manchester, Leeds and Liverpool have continued to see house price increases while the market has slowed down in London.

London growth remains slow at one per cent, and the greatest downward pressure on prices is being registered in inner London.

But in Manchester the increase saw the cost of the average house rise to £160,000.

Half of the 20 cities covered by the Hometrack index registered higher annual growth than a year ago.

Five cities registered growth of more than seven per cent per year: Edinburgh, Liverpool, Leicester, Birmingham and Manchester.

The average increase across the UK was 5.2 per cent.
The increase in Leeds was 6.9 per cent – bringing the price of the average house to £161,000.

In Birmingham the increase was 7.7 per cent meaning the cost of the average house now stands at £155,600.

Meanwhile Liverpool saw an increase of 7.8 per cent bringing the cost of an average house to £115,700.

A spokesperson for Hometrack said: “The greatest downward pressure on prices is being registered in inner London areas where prices are highest prices, yields lowest and with a greater share of discretionary buyers.

“The latest results confirm our view that house prices in London are set to drift lower in the next two to three years.

“In contrast, house price growth remains robust in the largest regional cities where similar analysis on rising and falling markets reveals no evidence of localised price falls.”

Chief executive of Emoov.co.uk Russell Quirk, said: “The appeal of city living continues to ensure that house price growth across the nation’s major cities remains buoyant, despite wider market conditions.

“This imbalance of supply to meet demand in the more densely populated areas of the market has seen them buck the trend of a slower start to the year, to enjoy a greater rate of annual growth than this time last year.

“Unfortunately for the capital the much higher price of getting on the ladder, and the greater degree of buyer uncertainty as a result, has seen London remain one of the ugly ducklings of city living where market performance is concerned.

“London is still viewed by many as the pinnacle of homeownership in the UK and while the growing political tensions with Russia will do little to help London’s prime central market, vast pockets of the capital remain very popular among buyers.”