Brighton and Hove house prices dropped more than South East average in February

House prices dropped by 1.5% – more than the average for the South East – in Brighton and Hove in February, new figures show.

But the drop does not reverse the longer-term trend, which has seen property prices in the area achieve 6.8% annual growth.

The average Brighton and Hove house price in February was £446,582, Land Registry figures show – a 1.5% decrease on January.

Over the month, the picture was similar to that across the South East, where prices decreased 1.2%, and Brighton and Hove underperformed compared to the 1% drop for the UK as a whole.

Over the last year, the average sale price of property in Brighton and Hove rose by £28,000 – putting the area 40th among the South East’s 64 local authorities with price data for annual growth.

The best annual growth in the region was in Maidstone, where property prices increased on average by 12.1%, to £367,000. At the other end of the scale, properties in Oxford gained just 0.4% in value, giving an average price of £460,000.

Winners and Losers

Owners of terraced houses fared worst in Brighton and Hove in February – they dropped 1.8% in price, to £503,230 on average. But over the last year, prices rose by 8.2%.

Among other types of property:

• Detached: down 1.4% monthly; up 8% annually; £885,511 average
• Semi-detached: down 1.7% monthly; up 8.2% annually; £569,109 average
• Flats: down 1.3% monthly; up 4.8% annually; £340,474 average

First steps on the property ladder

First-time buyers in Brighton and Hove spent an average of £387,000 on their property – £23,000 more than a year ago, and £73,000 more than in February 2018.

By comparison, former owner-occupiers paid £511,000 on average in February – 31.9% more than first-time buyers.

How do property prices in Brighton and Hove compare?

Buyers paid 12.9% more than the average price in the South East (£396,000) in February for a property in Brighton and Hove. Across the South East, property prices are higher than those across the UK, where the average cost £288,000.

The most expensive properties in the South East were in Elmbridge – £721,000 on average, and 1.6 times as much as more than in Brighton and Hove. Elmbridge properties cost 2.8 times as much as homes in Southampton (£255,000 average), at the other end of the scale.

The highest property prices across the UK were in 160.

Factfile

Average property price in February

• Brighton and Hove: £446,582
• The South East:£395,571
• UK: £287,506

Annual growth to February

• Brighton and Hove: +6.8%
• The South East: +5.8%
• UK: +5.5%

Best and worst annual growth in the South East

• Maidstone: +12.1%
• Oxford: +0.4%