NEWPORT has the biggest house price growth in Wales this year, with an average price of nearly £200,000, according to new research.

Property sales intermediary Movewise has analysed the latest Land Registry house price data to identify the UK’s house price 'winners' and 'losers' of 2020, comparing average prices at the start of the year to those in October 2020, across more than 100 major UK towns and cities.

Newport property sellers are winning - although those hoping to buy property may disagree - with an increase of 8.1 per cent in the average house price.

In December 2019, the average house price for Newport was £184,642. By October, this had risen to £199,575.

Other parts of the UK which have “won” in terms of increased average house prices are Liverpool, Slough, Worcester, Cheltenham, Nuneaton, Gateshead, Winchester, Bath, and Nottingham.

“Considering the economic and social challenges we’ve faced this year, the UK property market has once again proved itself to be extremely resilient in the face of adversity," said Movewise chief executive Tom Scarborough.

“Undoubtedly, the stamp duty holiday introduced in July has helped fuel house price growth, turbo-charging the property market in the second half of the year.

"We have seen a buyer frenzy, as people look to take advantage of stamp duty savings up to £15,000. That, coupled with continued low stock in many areas, has put upward pressure on prices.

IN OTHER NEWS:

“However, the impact of lockdown has also seen a noticeable shift in where we want to live and what we want from our homes, and that has fuelled house price growth in towns beyond the commuter belt.

"With millions of people stuck at home during lockdown, having a garden became a life-saver. The desire to live in major cities with all the conveniences they afford was replaced by the need to have some outside space and a better quality of life.

“Even after lockdown ended, many of us have re-evaluated what we want from our home-life. The need to be within a commutable distance to major cities such as London is longer so important.

"We expect this migration to continue through 2021 with more people making the decision to live further out from major urban areas, particularly as the working-from-home trend gathers momentum.”

Movewise is a firm that uses technology to identify the best estate agents to sell a property, then acts as an intermediary between those agents and the seller, managing the entire process.