HOUSE prices dropped by 1.1 per cent in Basingstoke and Deane in January, new figures show.

But the drop does not reverse the longer-term trend, which has seen property prices in the area achieve 10.9 per cent annual growth.

The average Basingstoke and Deane house price in January was £340,879, Land Registry figures show – a 1.1 per cent decrease on December.

Over the month, the picture was worse than that across the South East, where prices increased 0.5 per cent, and Basingstoke and Deane underperformed compared to the 0.4 per cent rise for the UK as a whole.

Over the last year, the average sale price of property in Basingstoke and Deane rose by £33,000 – putting the area 37th among the South East’s 64 local authorities with price data for annual growth.

The best annual growth in the region was in East Hampshire, where property prices increased on average by 16.7 per cent, to £456,000. At the other end of the scale, properties in Slough gained just 2.5 per cent in value, giving an average price of £307,000.

Winners and Losers

Owners of detached houses fared worst in Basingstoke and Deane in January – they dropped 1.5 per cent in price, to £608,909 on average. But over the last year, prices rose by 13.6 per cent.

Among other types of property:

Semi-detached: down one per cent monthly; up 12.3 per cent annually; £371,436 average

Terraced: down 1 per cent monthly; up 8.6 per cent annually; £282,221 average

Flats: down 0.9 per cent monthly; up 8 per cent annually; £184,323 average

First steps on the property ladder

First-time buyers in Basingstoke and Deane spent an average of £264,000 on their property – £24,000 more than a year ago, and £29,000 more than in January 2017.

By comparison, former owner-occupiers paid £415,000 on average in January – 57.1 per cent more than first-time buyers.

How do property prices in Basingstoke and Deane compare?

Buyers paid 9.9 per cent less than the average price in the South East (£378,000) in January for a property in Basingstoke and Deane. Across the South East, property prices are lower than those across the UK, where the average cost £274,000.

The most expensive properties in the South East were in Elmbridge – £695,000 on average, and twice as much as more than in Basingstoke and Deane. Elmbridge properties cost three times as much as homes in Portsmouth (£235,000 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 January

Basingstoke and Deane: £340,879

The South East: £378,311

UK: £273,762

Annual growth to January

Basingstoke and Deane: +10.9 per cent

The South East: +11.1 per cent

UK: +9.6 per cent

Best and worst annual growth in the South East

East Hampshire: +16.7 per cent

Slough: +2.5 per cent