House prices increased by 1.1% in Somerset in July, new figures show.

The rise contributes to the longer-term trend, which has seen property prices in the area grow by 0.2% over the last year.

The average Somerset house price in July was £301,185, Land Registry figures show – a 1.1% increase on June.

Over the month, the picture was different to that across the South West, where prices decreased 0.2%, and Somerset was above the 0.5% rise for the UK as a whole.

Over the last year, the average sale price of property in Somerset rose by £520 – putting the area 16th among the South West’s 26 local authorities with price data for annual growth.

The highest annual growth in the region was in the Forest of Dean, where property prices increased on average by 5.9%, to £321,000. At the other end of the scale, properties in West Devon lost 3.1% of their value, giving an average price of £312,000.

First steps on the property ladder

First-time buyers in Somerset spent an average of £242,200 on their property – £380 less than a year ago, but £54,240 more than in July 2018.

By comparison, former owner-occupiers paid £338,440 on average in July – 39.7% more than first-time buyers.

Property types

Owners of terraced houses saw the biggest rise in property prices in Somerset in July – they increased 1.2%, to £240,613 on average. Over the last year, prices dropped by 0.6%.

Among other types of property:

  • Detached: up 1.2% monthly; up 0.9% annually; £473,646 average
  • Semi-detached: up 1.1% monthly; up 0.6% annually; £300,281 average
  • Flats: up 0.5% monthly; down 1.5% annually; £147,265 average

How do property prices in Somerset compare?

Buyers paid 7% less than the average price in the South West (£324,000) in July for a property in Somerset. Across the South West, property prices are higher than those across the UK, where the average cost is £290,000.

The most expensive properties in the South West were in Cotswold – £482,000 on average, and 1.6 times the price as in Somerset. Cotswold properties cost 2.2 times the price as homes in Plymouth (£223,000 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 July

  • Somerset: £301,185
  • The South West: £323,713
  • UK: £289,824

Annual change to July

  • Somerset: +0.2%
  • The South West: -1%
  • UK: +0.6%

Highest and lowest annual growth in the South West

  • The Forest of Dean: +5.9%
  • West Devon: -3.1%