HOUSE prices increased by 1.7% – more than the average for West Midlands – in Redditch in August, new figures show.

The rise contributes to the longer-term trend, which has seen property prices in the area grow by 4.3% over the last year.

The average Redditch house price in August was £269,046. Land Registry figures show a 1.7% increase on July.

Over the month, the picture was different to that across West Midlands, where prices increased 1.1%, and Redditch was above the 1.5% rise for the UK as a whole.

Over the last year, the average sale price of property in Redditch rose by £11,000 – putting the area 10th among West Midlands’s 30 local authorities with price data for annual growth.

The highest annual growth in the region was in Staffordshire Moorlands, where property prices increased on average by 8.1%, to £234,000. At the other end of the scale, properties in Bromsgrove lost 3.3% of their value, giving an average price of £338,000.

First steps on the property ladder

First-time buyers in Redditch spent an average of £224,800 on their property – £10,000 more than a year ago, and £50,000 more than in August 2019.

By comparison, former owner-occupiers paid £301,600 on average in August – 34.2% more than first-time buyers.

Property types

Owners of flats saw the biggest rise in property prices in Redditch in August – they increased 2.2%, to £133,826 on average. Over the last year, prices rose by 3.4%.

Among other types of property:

Detached: up 1% monthly; up 3.1% annually; £419,328 average

Semi-detached: up 1.6% monthly; up 5.1% annually; £270,364 average

Terraced: up 2.1% monthly; up 4.7% annually; £213,921 average

How do property prices in Redditch compare?

Buyers paid 5.5% more than the average price in West Midlands (£255,000) in August for a property in Redditch. Across West Midlands, property prices are lower than those across the UK, where the average cost is £293,000.

The most expensive properties in West Midlands were in Stratford-on-Avon – £382,000 on average, and 1.4 times the price as in Redditch. Stratford-on-Avon properties cost 2.6 times the price as homes in Stoke (£147,000 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 August

Redditch: £269,046

West Midlands: £255,102

UK: £292,924

Annual growth to August

Redditch: +4.3%

West Midlands: +2.6%

UK: +2.8%

Highest and lowest annual growth in West Midlands

Staffordshire Moorlands: +8.1%

Bromsgrove: -3.3%