House prices increased slightly, by 0.4%, in Monmouthshire in April, new figures show.

The rise contributes to the longer-term trend, which has seen property prices in the area grow by 17.6% 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 Monmouthshire house price in April was £346,291, Land Registry figures show – a 0.4% increase on March.

Over the month, the picture was different to that across Wales, where prices increased 2.2%, and Monmouthshire was lower than the 1.1% rise for the UK as a whole.

Over the last year, the average sale price of property in Monmouthshire rose by £52,000 – putting the area sixth among Wales’s 22 local authorities with price data for annual growth.

The highest annual growth in the region was in Ceredigion, where property prices increased on average by 23%, to £260,000. At the other end of the scale, properties in Denbighshire gained just 9.2% in value, giving an average price of £195,000.

First steps on the property ladder

First-time buyers in Monmouthshire spent an average of £268,000 on their property – £39,000 more than a year ago, and £85,000 more than in April 2017.

By comparison, former owner-occupiers paid £404,000 on average in April – 50.9% more than first-time buyers.

Property types

Owners of flats saw the biggest rise in property prices in Monmouthshire in April – they increased 0.9%, to £169,963 on average. Over the last year, prices rose by 14%.

Among other types of property:

How do property prices in Monmouthshire compare?

Buyers paid more for properties in Monmouthshire than anywhere else in Wales in April. The average price paid would buy 2.6 homes in Blaenau Gwent (£132,000), at the other end of the scale.

The highest property prices across the UK were in Kensington and Chelsea.

Across Wales, property prices are high compared to those across the UK, where the average cost £281,000.

Factfile

Average property price in April

Annual growth to April

Highest and lowest annual growth in Wales