Bedford house prices increased more than East of England average, new figures show

House prices increased by 1.5% – more than the average for the East of England – in Bedford in July, new figures show.

The rise contributes to the longer-term trend, which has seen property prices in the area grow by 2.8% over the last year. The average Bedford house price in July was £349,537, Land Registry figures show – a 1.5% increase on June.

Over the month, the picture was different to that across the East of England, where prices increased 0.4%, and Bedford was above the 0.5% rise for the UK as a whole.

Over the last year, the average sale price of property in Bedford rose by £9,600 – putting the area eighth among the East of England’s 45 local authorities with price data for annual growth.

The highest annual growth in the region was in Maldon, where property prices increased on average by 7.4%, to £431,000. At the other end of the scale, properties in Watford lost 5.2% of their value, giving an average price of £377,000.

First steps on the property ladder

First-time buyers in Bedford spent an average of £280,400 on their property – £7,600 more than a year ago, and £42,300 more than in July 2018.

By comparison, former owner-occupiers paid £400,300 on average in July – 42.7% more than first-time buyers.

Property types

Owners of terraced houses saw the biggest rise in property prices in Bedford in July – they increased 1.7%, to £271,576 on average. Over the last year, prices rose by 2.1%.

Among other types of property:

Detached: up 1.6% monthly; up 3.9% annually; £585,475 averageSemi-detached: up 1.6% monthly; up 2.7% annually; £350,794 averageFlats: up 1.1% monthly; up 1.6% annually; £180,241 average

How do property prices in Bedford compare?

Buyers paid 0.9% less than the average price in the East of England (£353,000) in July for a property in Bedford. Across the East of England, property prices are high compared to those across the UK, where the average cost is £290,000.

The most expensive properties in the East of England were in St Albans – £589,000 on average, and 1.7 times the price as in Bedford. St Albans properties cost 2.7 times the price as homes in Great Yarmouth (£215,000 average), at the other end of the scale.

The highest property prices across the UK were in Kensington and Chelsea.

Factfile

Average property price in July

Bedford: £349,537The East of England: £352,723UK: £289,824Annual growth to July

Bedford: +2.8%The East of England: +0.2%UK: +0.6%Highest and lowest annual growth in the East of England

Maldon: +7.4%Watford: -5.2%