Mid Ulster house prices held steady in May

File photo dated 14/10/14 of a sold and for sale signs. A gradual slowdown in the housing market in Scotland is likely as the cost-of-living crisis bites, a report has warned. House prices in Scotland continue to edge upwards but indicators are softening slightly, according to the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (Rics) latest survey. Issue date: Thursday May 12, 2022.

House prices remained steady in Mid Ulster in May, new figures show.

The lack of movement maintains the longer-term trend, which has seen property prices in the area grow by 10.4% over the last year – the highest in Northern Ireland.

The average Mid Ulster house price in May was £159,605, Land Registry figures show – largely unchanged from April.

Over the month, the picture was similar to that across Northern Ireland, where prices remained static, and Mid Ulster was lower than the 1.2% rise for the UK as a whole.

Over the last year, the average sale price of property in Mid Ulster rose by £15,000 – putting the area top among Northern Ireland’s 11 local authorities with price data for annual growth.

At the other end of the scale, properties in Belfast gained 4.2% in value, giving an average price of £153,000.

An imbalance between supply and demand for properties has remained the primary reason behind climbing house prices across the UK throughout the pandemic.

But activity is starting to slow, with soaring inflation putting household budgets under pressure.

Sarah Coles, senior personal finance analyst at financial advice company Hargreaves Lansdown, said:“The average house price hit another record high in May, and rose faster than any time since the peak in June last year.

"However, we’re starting to see small changes in the market, which are likely to mean weaker growth in the coming months, especially if interest rates are hiked in August."

How do property prices in Mid Ulster compare?

Buyers paid 3% less than the average price in Northern Ireland (£165,000) in May for a property in Mid Ulster. Across Northern Ireland, property prices are lower than those across the UK, where the average cost £283,000.

The most expensive properties in Northern Ireland were in Lisburn and Castlereagh – £190,000 on average, and 1.2 times as much as more than in Mid Ulster. Lisburn and Castlereagh properties cost 1.3 times as much as homes in Derry City and Strabane (£146,000 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

Mid Ulster: £159,605Northern Ireland:£164,590UK: £283,496

Annual growth to May

Mid Ulster: +10.4%Northern Ireland: +6.7%UK: +12.8%

Highest and lowest annual growth in Northern Ireland

Mid Ulster: +10.4%Belfast: +4.2%