NEWPORT recorded one of the smallest growths in house prices in the whole of the UK in 2022, new figures show.

Figures by the Halifax show the average house price in Newport rose by 2.3 per cent, or £5,645, over the 12 months up to the end of November, to £247,245.

This ranks the city 15th for the weakest property price growth over this period. Leicester saw the worst performance across the whole of the UK, with average prices falling by 3.6 per cent.

York recorded the strongest house price inflation across England and Wales’s towns and cities in 2022, according to analysis.

Over the past year, house prices in the historic Yorkshire city have grown by 23.1%, or £69,648 on average in cash terms, Halifax found.

In Wales, Swansea recorded the highest rate of house price growth, with prices there having increased by 17.5 per cent or £39,450 annually.

Across Wales as a whole, average prices increased by 8.7 per cent, or £20,669, to an average of £257,695.

Kim Kinnaird, mortgages director, Halifax, said: “Overall 2022 was another year of rapid house price growth for most areas in the UK.

“And unlike many years in the past, the list isn’t dominated by towns and cities in the South East.

“Nowhere is that more the case than in the cathedral city of York, which saw the highest property price inflation across England and Wales this year, rising by over a fifth.

“While existing homeowners will welcome the increased value of their home, such a jump makes it much more challenging for those looking to step on to the property ladder or move into the city.

“While London still has some of the highest property prices in the country, it recorded comparatively modest house price inflation over the last 12 months.

“This is partly due to pandemic-driven shifts in housing preferences as buyers sought bigger properties further from urban centres.

“We can see this clearly in commuter towns such as Woking, Chelmsford and Hove, which – with their more diverse range of properties perhaps offering better value – recorded much bigger increases over the last year.”

Tom Bill, head of UK residential research at estate agent Knight Frank, said: “This year saw the ‘escape to the country’ trend wind down while the return to towns and cities gathered pace.

“York captures the best of both of those worlds. Many people moved to Yorkshire during the pandemic due to family ties and the relative affordability compared to areas such as the Cotswolds.

“Meanwhile, the strength of south-east England underlines the gravitational pull of the capital as the economy reopens.

“London prices were more muted due to affordability constraints that predate the pandemic, which mean prices in the commuter belt and beyond should continue to outperform the capital in the medium-term.”

Where did house prices increase the most?

Here are the cities and towns in England and Wales with the strongest annual percentage increases in house prices, according to Halifax, with the region and the average house price followed by the increase in cash and percentage terms (figures show the change in the 12 months to November 2022):

1. York, Yorkshire and the, Humber, £370,639, £69,648, 23.1 per cent;

2. Woking, South East, £586,925, £93,626, 19.0 per cent;

3. Swansea, Wales, £265,379, £39,450 17.5 per cent;

4. Chelmsford, East of England, £485,770, £69,775, 16.8 per cent;

5. Kettering, East Midlands, £326,895, £44,731, 15.9 per cent;

6. Derby, East Midlands, £277,491, £37,953, 15.8 per cent;

7. Wellingborough, East Midlands, £306,985, £41,087, 15.5 per cent;

8. Peterborough, East of England, £289,994, £37,599, 14.9 per cent;

=9. Bristol, South West, £394,126, £50,864, 14.8 per cent;

=9. Cambridge, East of England, £531,730, £68,586, 14.8 per cent;

11. Brentwood, East of England, £533,327, £66,998, 14.4 per cent;

12. Bournemouth, South West, £365,148, £45,559, 14.3 per cent;

13. Hove, South East, £526,201, £65,255, 14.2 per cent;

14. Colchester, East of England, £377,003, £46,208, 14.0 per cent;

15. Birmingham, West Midlands, £269,385, £32,563, 13.8 per cent;

16. Milton Keynes, South East, £416,496, £49,594, 13.5 per cent;

17. Newcastle-upon-Tyne, North East, £260,675, £30,157, 13.1 per cent;

18. Nottingham, East Midlands, £286,696, £32,966, 13.0 per cent;

19. Southampton, South East, £316,286, £36,151, 12.9 per cent;

20. Cheltenham, South West, £406,767, £45,972, 12.7 per cent.

Where did house prices increase by the least?

1. Leicester, East Midlands, £271,092, minus £10,212, minus 3.6 per cent;

2. Hull, Yorkshire and the Humber, £163,677, minus £4,956, minus 2.9 per cent;

3. Maidenhead, South East, £549,722, minus £12,326, minus 2.2 per cent;

4. Stoke-on-Trent, West Midlands, £183,928, minus £3,149, minus 1.7 per cent;

5. Islington, London, £712,843, £3,059, 0.4 per cent;

6. Tower Hamlets, London, £530,056, £3,582, 0.7 per cent;

7. Westminster, London, £770,517, £6,510, 0.9 per cent;

=8. Lambeth, London, £601,372, £8,224, 1.4 per cent;

=8. Weston-Super-Mare, South West, £264,569, £3,649, 1.4 per cent;

10. Hackney, London, £639,995, £10,743, 1.7 per cent;

=11. Harlow, East of England, £348,180, £6,227, 1.8 per cent;

=11. Warrington, North West, £282,457, £5,079, 1.8 per cent;

13. Huddersfield, Yorkshire and the Humber, £253,105, £4,773, 1.9 per cent;

14. Oldham, North West, £220,427, £4,309, 2.0 per cent;

15. Newport (City of), Wales, £247,245, £5,645, 2.3 per cent;

16. Wakefield, Yorkshire and the Humber, £243,589, £5,754, 2.4 per cent;

17. Southwark, London, £620,472, £15,043, 2.5 per cent;

18. Lewisham, London, £519,971, £13,558, 2.7 per cent;

19. Gloucester, South West, £286,914, £7,760, 2.8 per cent;

20. Camden, London, £773,263, £22,145, 2.9 per cent.