House prices leapt by 5.1% in Bath and North East Somerset in May, new figures show.

The significant rise contributes to the longer-term trend, which has seen property prices in the area grow by 10% over the last year – the highest in the South West.

The average Bath and North East Somerset house price in May was £449,100. Land Registry figures show a 5.1% increase on April.

Over the month, the picture was different to that across the South West, where prices increased 0.6%, and Bath and North East Somerset was above the 1.2% rise for the UK as a whole.

Over the last year, the average sale price of property in Bath and North East Somerset rose by £41,000 – putting the area top among the South West’s 26 local authorities with price data for annual growth.

At the other end of the scale, properties in South Hams lost 5.5% of their value, giving an average price of £377,000.

First steps on the property ladder

First-time buyers in Bath and North East Somerset spent an average of £388,000 on their property – £35,000 more than a year ago, and £95,000 more than in May 2019.

By comparison, former owner-occupiers paid £490,000 on average in May – 26.3% more than first-time buyers.

Property types

Owners of detached houses saw the biggest rise in property prices in Bath and North East Somerset in May – they increased 5.4%, to £745,783 on average. Over the last year, prices rose by 9.1%.

Among other types of property:

Semi-detached:
Terraced:
Flats:

How do property prices in Bath and North East Somerset compare?

Buyers paid 41.1% more than the average price in the South West (£318,000) in May for a property in Bath and North East Somerset. Across the South West, property prices are higher than those across the UK, where the average cost is £285,000.

The most expensive properties in the South West were in Cotswold – £497,000 on average, and 1.1 times the price as in Bath and North East Somerset. Cotswold properties cost 2.2 times the price as homes in Plymouth (£224,000 average), at the other end of the scale.

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

Factfile

Average property price in May

  • Bath and North East Somerset: £449,100
  • The South West: £318,223
  • UK: £285,201

Annual growth to May

  • Bath and North East Somerset: +10%
  • The South West: +2.3%
  • UK: +2.2%

Highest and lowest annual growth in the South West

  • Bath and North East Somerset: +10%
  • South Hams: -5.5%