Moorlands house prices rise over £12k in one year

HOUSE prices are rising at more than £80 a day in parts of Staffordshire.

The average house price in Stafford rose by 13.2% in the year to March, according to latest figures from the Office for National Statistics. That was an increase from £223,985 to £253,569 in a year - meaning, on average, house prices have grown by £29,584, or the equivalent of £81 a day.

In the Staffordshire Moorlands, the price rise is more modest at 6% which represents an increase from £202,979 to £215,145 - a £12,166 rise.

There’s also been a 10.5% rise in house prices in South Staffordshire, or a £27,505 increase over the year (£75 per day). The average home now costs £289,918, compared to £262,413 a year before.

UK average house prices increased by 9.8% over the year to March 2022, down from 11.3% in February 2022. The average UK house price was £278,000 in March 2022, which is £24,000 higher than this time last year.

Nathan Emerson, CEO of Propertymark, which represents estate agents, said: “The year-on-year increase shows there is still plenty of momentum within the housing market, however we are now seeing some signs of things starting to cool.

“But we keep coming back to the issue of low supply being the main driver of rising prices. Our member agents are telling us that it’s still an issue and that the number of people looking to buy remains far higher than the number of properties they have listed. This, coupled with incredibly low borrowing rates, is likely to maintain prices in the short to medium term.”

Mike Scott, Chief Analyst at national estate agency Yopa, also said the expectation was that month-onmonth growth would resume in next month’s report, with the annual rate of growth staying around 10%.

He said: “House prices cannot continue to defy gravity forever, but the current shortage of homes for sale and high demand from people who are still re-evaluating their lives and priorities for the postpandemic world are likely to continue to support prices for at least the rest of 2022, and we do not anticipate any significant falls in nominal house prices this year.

“However with inflation continuing to rise, and early signs that the housing market is beginning to cool off, it would not be surprising if we end the year with house prices rising more slowly than other prices, and so falling in real terms.”

Between 2016 and 2019, there was a general slowdown in UK house price growth, driven mainly by a slowdown in the south and east of England.