Bedford house prices increased more than East of England average in December

The average house price in the town was £301,237
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House prices increased by 3 per cent – more than the average for the East of England – in Bedford in December, new figures show.

The boost contributes to the longer-term trend, where property prices in the area have achieved 4.2 per cent annual growth.

The average Bedford house price in December was £301,237, Land Registry figures show – a 3 per cent increase on November.

The average house price in Bedford was £301,237 in DecemberThe average house price in Bedford was £301,237 in December
The average house price in Bedford was £301,237 in December

Over the month, the picture was better than that across the East of England, where prices increased 2.4 per cent, and Bedford outperformed the 1.2 per cent rise for the UK as a whole.

Over the last year, the average sale price of property in Bedford rose by £12,000 – putting the area 36th among the East of England’s 50 local authorities for annual growth.

WINNERS AND LOSERS

Owners of terraced houses saw the biggest improvement in property prices in Bedford in December – they increased 3.4 per cent, to £235,939 on average. Over the last year, prices rose by 4.6 per cent.

Among other types of property:

Detached: up 2.7 per cent monthly; up 5.2 per cent annually; £492,949 average

Semi-detached: up 3 per cent monthly; up 4.4 per cent annually; £299,998 average

Flats: up 3.1 per cent monthly; up 0.8 per cent% annually; £164,782 average

FIRST STEPS ON THE PROPERTY LADDER

First-time buyers in Bedford spent an average of £243,300 on their property – £8,700 more than a year ago, and £48,300 more than in November 2015.

By comparison, former owner-occupiers paid £342,900 on average in December – 40.9 per cent more than first-time buyers.

HOW DO PROPERTY PRICES IN BEDFORD COMPARE?

Buyers paid 3.1 per cent less than the average price in the East of England (£311,000) in December for a property in Bedford. Across the East of England, property prices are higher than those across the UK, where the average cost £252,000.

The most expensive properties in the East of England were in St Albans – £530,000 on average, and 1.8 times as much as in Bedford. St Albans properties cost 2.8 times as much as homes in Great Yarmouth (£186,000 average), at the other end of the scale.

The highest property prices across the UK were in Kensington and Chelsea, where the average December sale price of £1.3million could buy 13 properties in Burnley (average £98,000).

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