HOUSE prices increased by 2 per cent – more than the average for the South East – in Reading in February, new figures show.

The boost contributes to the longer-term trend, which has seen property prices in the area achieve 6.6 per cent annual growth.

The average Reading house price in February was £305,754, Land Registry figures show – a 2 per cent increase on January.

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Over the month, the picture was better than that across the South East, where prices increased 0.9 per cent, and Reading outperformed the UK as a whole, where prices did not change.

Over the last year, the average sale price of property in Reading rose by £19,000 – putting the area 36th among the South East’s 70 local authorities for annual growth.

The best annual growth in the region was in Swale, where property prices increased on average by 17.9 per cent, to £286,000.

At the other end of the scale, properties in Folkestone and Hythe gained 0.4 per cent in value, giving an average price of £265,000.

Winners and Losers

Owners of flats saw the biggest improvement in property prices in Reading in February – they increased 2.7 per cent, to £217,748 on average. Over the last year, prices rose by 4.6 per cent.

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Among other types of property:

Detached: up 1.5 per cent monthly; up 8.4 per cent annually; £633,165 average

Semi-detached: up 1.7 per cent monthly; up 7.4 per cent annually; £390,015 average

Terraced: up 1.8 per cent monthly; up 7.2 per cent annually; £308,048 average

First steps on the property ladder

First-time buyers in Reading spent an average of £273,000 on their property – £16,000 more than a year ago, and £13,000 more than in January 2016.

By comparison, former owner-occupiers paid £344,000 on average in February – 25.9 per cent more than first-time buyers.

How do property prices in Reading compare?

Buyers paid 11.4 per cent less than the average price in the South East (£345,000) in February for a property in Reading. Across the South East, property prices are high compared to those across the UK, where the average cost £250,000.

The most expensive properties in the South East were in Elmbridge – £615,000 on average, and twice as much as in Reading. Elmbridge properties cost 2.8 times as much as homes in Portsmouth (£223,000 average), at the other end of the scale.

The highest property prices across the UK were in Kensington and Chelsea, where the average February sale price of £1.2 million could buy 13 properties in Hyndburn (average £92,000).