Newcastle house prices dropped slightly in April

File photo dated 14/10/14 of a sold and for sale signs. A gradual slowdown in the housing market in Scotland is likely as the cost-of-living crisis bites, a report has warned. House prices in Scotland continue to edge upwards but indicators are softening slightly, according to the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (Rics) latest survey. Issue date: Thursday May 12, 2022.

House prices dropped slightly, by 0.4%, in Newcastle in April, new figures show.

But the drop does not reverse the longer-term trend, which has seen property prices in the area grow by 6.8% over the last year.

An imbalance between supply and demand for properties has remained the primary reason behind climbing house prices across the UK throughout the pandemic.

The need for larger deposits and constraints on accessing mortgages have pushed homeownership further out of reach for many first-time buyers – despite Government figures showing 50% of renters would be able to afford the monthly payments.

In a recent major speech in Blackpool, Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced a “comprehensive review” of the mortgage market would take place in a bid to help more people onto the property ladder.

The average Newcastle house price in April was £183,593, Land Registry figures show – a 0.4% decrease on March.

Over the month, the picture was different to that across the North East, where prices increased 0.1%, and Newcastle was lower than the 1.1% rise for the UK as a whole.

Over the last year, the average sale price of property in Newcastle rose by £12,000 – putting the area ninth among the North East’s 12 local authorities with price data for annual growth.

The highest annual growth in the region was in Middlesbrough, where property prices increased on average by 16.5%, to £142,000. At the other end of the scale, properties in Gateshead gained just 5.4% in value, giving an average price of £149,000.

First steps on the property ladder

First-time buyers in Newcastle spent an average of £158,600 on their property – £9,100 more than a year ago, and £26,600 more than in April 2017.

By comparison, former owner-occupiers paid £208,900 on average in April – 31.7% more than first-time buyers.

Property types

Owners of flats saw the biggest fall in property prices Newcastle in April – they dropped 1% in price, to £119,038 on average. But over the last year, prices rose by 2.4%.

Among other types of property:

Detached: up 0.4% monthly; up 13.3% annually; £376,715 averageSemi-detached: down 0.4% monthly; up 8.2% annually; £214,226 averageTerraced: down 0.3% monthly; up 5.6% annually; £177,798 average

How do property prices in Newcastle compare?

Buyers paid 18.3% more than the average price in the North East (£155,000) in April for a property in Newcastle. Across the North East, property prices are higher than those across the UK, where the average cost £281,000.

The most expensive properties in the North East were in North Tyneside – £195,000 on average, and 6% more than in Newcastle. North Tyneside properties cost 1.5 times as much as homes in County Durham (£126,000 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 April

Newcastle: £183,593The North East:£155,215UK: £281,161

Annual growth to April

Newcastle: +6.8%The North East: +10.7%UK: +12.4%

Highest and lowest annual growth in the North East

Middlesbrough: +16.5%Gateshead: +5.4%