South Kesteven house prices dropped slightly in December

House prices dropped slightly, by 0.1%, in South Kesteven in December, new figures show.

But the drop does not reverse the longer-term trend, which has seen property prices in the area grow by 12.3% over the last year.

The average South Kesteven house price in December was £279,101, Land Registry figures show – a 0.1% decrease on November.

Over the month, the picture was different to that across the East Midlands, where prices increased 0.5%, and South Kesteven was above the 0.4% drop for the UK as a whole.

Over the last year, the average sale price of property in South Kesteven rose by £31,000 – putting the area 26th among the East Midlands’s 35 local authorities with price data for annual growth.

The highest annual growth in the region was in Broxtowe, where property prices increased on average by 16.5%, to £256,000. At the other end of the scale, properties in Rushcliffe gained 7.1% in value, giving an average price of £360,000.

The average UK house price was £294,000 in December 2022, which was £26,000 higher than 12 months earlier.

It meant prices increased by 9.8% annually in December, slowing from 10.6% annual growth in November, according to the Office for National Statistics.

First steps on the property ladder

First-time buyers in South Kesteven spent an average of £231,000 on their property – £27,000 more than a year ago, and £60,000 more than in December 2017.

By comparison, former owner-occupiers paid £311,000 on average in December – 34.5% more than first-time buyers.

Property types

Owners of terraced houses saw the biggest fall in property prices South Kesteven in December – they dropped 0.2% in price, to £203,466 on average. But over the last year, prices rose by 13.1%.

Among other types of property:

Detached: down 0.1% monthly; up 11.6% annually; £396,410 averageSemi-detached: up 0% monthly; up 13.3% annually; £254,477 averageFlats: up 0.2% monthly; up 9.7% annually; £127,878 average

How do property prices in South Kesteven compare?

Buyers paid 9% more than the average price in the East Midlands (£256,000) in December for a property in South Kesteven. Across the East Midlands, property prices are higher than those across the UK, where the average cost £294,000.

The most expensive properties in the East Midlands were in Rutland – £392,000 on average, and 1.4 times as much as more than in South Kesteven. Rutland properties cost 2.2 times as much as homes in Bolsover (£178,000 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 December

South Kesteven: £279,101The East Midlands:£256,159UK: £294,329

Annual growth to December

South Kesteven: +12.3%The East Midlands: +12.3%UK: +9.8%

Highest and lowest annual growth in the East Midlands

Broxtowe: +16.5%Rushcliffe: +7.1%