Average UK house prices were up 2.8% in the year to November 2018, according to the official UK house price index from the Office for National Statistics.

The average UK house price was £231,000 in November 2018. This is £7,000 higher than in November 2017.

However, there has been a slowdown in house price growth over the past two years, driven mainly by the south and east of England.

The lowest annual growth was in London, where prices fell by 0.7% over the year to November 2018, unchanged from October 2018.

The West Midlands showed the highest annual growth, with prices increasing by 4.6% in the year to November 2018. This was followed by the East Midlands (4.4%).

Four nations

House prices in England grew slower than other countries of the UK, increasing by 2.6% in the year to November 2018, with the average price in England now £247,000. House prices in Wales increased by 5.5% over the last 12 months to reach £161,000.

In Scotland, the average price increased by 2.9% over the year to stand at £151,000. The average house price in Northern Ireland currently stands at £135,000, an increase of 4.8% over the year to quarter three 2018.

Jonathan Hopper, managing director of Garrington Property Finders, said: “Even as the national rate of price growth accelerates, London remains stuck in reverse – with prices falling in the capital for five months in a row.

“Against this polarising backdrop, it’s reassuring to see how many regions are delivering solid price growth, with the star performer, the West Midlands, only a nose ahead of three other regions.

“Across the Midlands, much of the North and South West England, prices aren’t just holding up, they’re rising at a decent clip. While buyers in these regions remain acutely price sensitive, the market is working more or less as it should, with low supply keeping prices marching upwards.

“By contrast prices in the capital continue to sag as demand wobbles and would-be sellers hunker down and wait for things to improve before putting their home on the market.”