House prices dropped slightly in South Lakeland in March, new figures show.

But the drop does not reverse the longer-term trend, which has seen property prices in the area achieve 6.1 per cent annual growth.

The average South Lakeland house price in March was £283,365, Land Registry figures show – a 0.8 per cent decrease on February.

Over the month, the picture was worse than that across the North West, where prices increased 0.4 per cent, and South Lakeland underperformed compared to the 0.3 per cent rise for the UK as a whole.

Over the last year, the average sale price of property in South Lakeland rose by £16,000 – putting the area 33rd among the North West’s 39 local authorities with price data for annual growth.

Winners and Losers

Owners of flats fared worst in South Lakeland in March – they dropped 1.2 per cent in price, to £165,224 on average. But over the last year, prices rose by 1.9 per cent.

Among other types of property:

Detached: down 0.7 per cent monthly; up 9.1 per cent annually; £445,242 average

Semi-detached: down 0.5 per cent monthly; up 6.7 per cent annually; £289,687 average

Terraced: down 0.9 per cent monthly; up 4.9 per cent annually; £236,495 average

First steps on the property ladder

First-time buyers in South Lakeland spent an average of £235,000 on their property – £12,000 more than a year ago, and £47,000 more than in March 2017.

By comparison, former owner-occupiers paid £314,000 on average in March – 33.8 per cent more than first-time buyers.

How do property prices in South Lakeland compare?

Buyers paid 38.1 per cent more than the average price in the North West (£205,000) in March for a property in South Lakeland. Across the North West, property prices are high compared to those across the UK, where the average cost £278,000.

The most expensive properties in the North West were in Trafford – £351,000 on average, and 1.2 times as much as more than in South Lakeland. Trafford properties cost 3.2 times as much as homes in Burnley (£111,000 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 March

  • South Lakeland: £283,365
  • The North West: £205,121
  • UK: £278,436
  • Annual growth to March
  • South Lakeland: +6.1 per cent
  • The North West: +9.7 per cent
  • UK: +9.8 per cent

Best and worst annual growth in the North West

  • Hyndburn: +22.6 per cent
  • Barrow: +3.4 per cent