House prices increased slightly, by 0.4 per cent, in Epping Forest in May, new figures show.

The boost contributes to the longer-term trend, which has seen property prices in the area achieve 8.2 per cent annual growth.

The average Epping Forest house price in May was £489,312, Land Registry figures show – a 0.4 per cent increase on April.

Over the month, the picture was better than that across the East of England, where prices decreased 1 per cent, but Epping Forest underperformed compared to the 0.9% rise for the UK as a whole.

Over the last year, the average sale price of property in Epping Forest rose by £37,000 – putting the area 21st among the East of England’s 50 local authorities for annual growth.

The best annual growth in the region was in Great Yarmouth, where property prices increased on average by 15.6 per cent, to £197,000. At the other end of the scale, properties in East Cambridgeshire gained 1 per cent in value, giving an average price of £285,000.

Winners and Losers

Owners of detached houses saw the biggest improvement in property prices in Epping Forest in May – they increased 0.6 per cent, to £937,560 on average. Over the last year, prices rose by 8.5 per cent.

Among other types of property:

Semi-detached: up 0.3 per cent monthly; up 8.7 per cent annually; £554,005 average

Terraced: up 0.4 per cent monthly; up 9.4 per cent annually; £419,590 average

Flats: up 0.3 per cent monthly; up 5.5 per cent annually; £294,022 average

First steps on the property ladder

First-time buyers in Epping Forest spent an average of £369,000 on their property – £27,000 more than a year ago, and £38,000 more than in May 2016.

By comparison, former owner-occupiers paid £587,000 on average in May – 58.9 per cent more than first-time buyers.

How do property prices in Epping Forest compare?

Buyers paid 57.7 per cent more than the average price in the East of England (£310,000) in May for a property in Epping Forest. Across the East of England, property prices are high compared to those across the UK, where the average cost £255,000.

The most expensive properties in the East of England were in Three Rivers – £547,000 on average, and 1.1 times as much as in Epping Forest. Three Rivers properties cost 2.8 times as much as homes in Great Yarmouth (£197,000 average), at the other end of the scale.

The highest property prices across the UK were in Kensington and Chelsea, where the average May sale price of £1.2 million could buy 12 properties in Burnley (average £100,000).

Factfile

Average property price in May

Epping Forest: £489,312

The East of England: £310,200

UK: £254,624

Annual growth to May

Epping Forest: +8.2 per cent

The East of England: +6.9 per cent

UK: +10 per cent

Best and worst annual growth in the East of England

Great Yarmouth: +15.6 per cent

East Cambridgeshire: +1.0 per cent