HOUSE prices crashed by 7.2 per cent in Flintshire in February, new figures show.

The large drop contributes to the longer-term trend, which has seen property prices in the area suffer a 1.1% annual decline – the worst in Wales.

The average Flintshire house price in February was £173,252, Land Registry figures show – a 7.2% decrease on January.

Over the month, the picture was worse than that across Wales, where prices decreased 0.7%, and Flintshire underperformed compared to the UK as a whole, where prices did not change.

Over the last year, the average sale price of property in Flintshire remained level – putting the area bottom among Wales’s 22 local authorities for annual growth.

Owners of detached houses fared worst in Flintshire in February – they dropped 7.3% in price, to £242,339 on average. Over the last year, prices dropped by 0.7%.

Among other types of property:

  • Semi-detached: down 7.2% monthly; down 1.4% annually; £149,233 average
  • Terraced: down 7.1% monthly; down 0.8% annually; £122,770 average
  • Flats: down 6.7% monthly; down 3.8% annually; £87,327 average

First steps on the property ladder

First-time buyers in Flintshire spent an average of £145,700 on their property – £1,900 less than a year ago, and £16,100 more than in January 2016.

By comparison, former owner-occupiers paid £194,300 on average in February – 33.4% more than first-time buyers.

How do property prices in Flintshire compare?

Buyers paid 3.7% less than the average price in Wales (£180,000) in February for a property in Flintshire. Across Wales, property prices are low compared to those across the UK, where the average cost £250,000.

The most expensive properties in Wales were in Monmouthshire – £303,000 on average, and 1.7 times as much as in Flintshire. Monmouthshire properties cost 2.8 times as much as homes in Blaenau Gwent (£108,000 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).

Factfile

Average property price in February

• Flintshire: £173,252

• Wales: £179,861

• UK: £250,341

Best and worst annual growth in Wales

• Blaenau Gwent: +18.4%

• Flintshire: -1.1%