The average property price in the UK at the end of 2018 was £230,776, according to figures from the Office for National Statistics.

The official UK House Price Index recorded average price growth of 0.2% in December, taking annual growth to 2.5%, a little over inflation for the year, which was 2.1% 2018.

UK property price growth last year was at its lowest level since July 2013.

Ups and downs

House price growth was strongest in Northern Ireland where prices increased by 5.5% over the year.

This was followed by Wales and the West Midlands, both increasing by 5.2% in the year to December 2018.

At the other end of the scale, the lowest annual growth was in the North East, where prices fell by 1% in the year to December 2018, down from an increase of 1.7% in November 2018.

This was followed by London where prices fell 0.6% over the year. London house prices have now been falling over the year each month since July 2018.

Lucy Pendleton, founder director of estate agents James Pendleton said: “Last year will go down as one of the hardest to read markets in recent memory. Prices in London began falling on an annual basis while other parts of the country kept notching up solid gains.

“In the end, property just about triumphed over inflation and rose in value in real terms but it was a close run thing with inflation coming in at 2.1% over the year.”