HOUSE prices increased slightly in the Braintree district in May, new figures reveal.

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

The average Braintree district house price in May was £303,261, Land Registry figures show – a 0.1 per cent increase on April.

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

Over the last year, the average sale price of property in Braintree rose by £23,000 – putting the area 23rd 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 one 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 Braintree in May – up 0.3 per cent, to £512,548 on average. Over the last year, prices rose by 9.2 per cent.

Among other types of property

Semi-detached: remained level over the month – up 7.7 per cent annually to £312,251 on average.

Terraced: down 0.1 per cent monthly and up 8.2 per cent annually to £260,587.

First steps on the property ladder

First-time buyers in Braintree spent an average of £252,000 on their property – £18,000 more than a year ago, and £41,000 more than in May 2016.

How do property prices in Braintree compare?

Buyers paid 2.2 per cent less than the average £310,000 price in the East of England in May for a property in Braintree.

Across the East of England, property prices are higher than those across the UK, where the average cost is £255,000.

The most expensive properties in the East of England were in Three Rivers – £547,000 on average, and 1.8 times as much as in Braintree. 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 was £1.2 million.

Factfile

Average property price in May

Braintree: £303,261

East of England: £310,200

UK: £254,624

Annual growth to May

Braintree: +8%

The East of England: +6.9%

UK: +10%