House prices in Luton dropped slightly according to new figures

House prices dropped slightly, by 0.2%, in Luton latest figures released this week.

But the drop does not reverse the longer-term trend, which has seen property prices in the area achieve 10.8% annual growth.

The average Luton house price in July was £274,493, Land Registry figures show –a 0.2% decrease on June.

Over the month, the picture was worse than that across the East of England, where prices increased 1.2%, and Luton underperformed compared to the 2% rise for the UK as a whole.

Across the UK, the the average UK house price leapt by 15.5% in the year to July, marking the biggest increase in 19 years.

But the increase in annual inflation was mainly because of “a base effect” from the falls in prices seen this time last year, as a result of changes in the stamp duty holiday, the ONS said.

Over the last year, the average sale price of property in Luton rose by £27,000 – putting the area 30th among the East of England’s 45 local authorities with price data for annual growth.

The best annual growth in the region was in Great Yarmouth, where property prices increased on average by 22.5%, to £228,000. At the other end of the scale, properties in Hertsmere gained just 6.8% in value, giving an average price of £534,000.

Winners and losers

Owners of detached houses fared worst in Luton in July – they dropped 0.7% in price, to £476,937 on average. But over the last year, prices rose by 11.7%.

Among other types of property

Semi-detached: down 0.1% monthly; up 12.1% annually; £322,260 average

Terraced: down 0.1% monthly; up 11.2% annually; £259,444 average

Flats: down 0.4% monthly; up 5.9% annually; £150,425 average

First steps on the property ladder

First-time buyers in Luton spent an average of £242,000 on their property – £23,000 more than a year ago, and £28,000 more than in July 2017.

By comparison, former owner-occupiers paid £314,000 on average in July – 30.2% more than first-time buyers.

How do property prices in Luton compare?

Buyers paid 23.4% less than the average price in the East of England (£358,000) in July for a property in Luton. Across the East of England, property prices are low compared to those across the UK, where the average cost £292,000.

The most expensive properties in the East of England were in Three Rivers – £609,000 on average, and 2.2 times as much as more than in Luton. Three Rivers properties cost 2.7 times as much as homes in Great Yarmouth (£228,000 average), at the other end of the scale.

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