Average flat price 'has risen by 60% since 2005'

Updated
Flats more expensive
Flats more expensive



The average price of a flat has increased by £730 a month over the past decade, making it the strongest-performing property type, a study has found.

At £233,424, the typical price of a flat has increased by 60% or £87,550 since 2005, according to research by Halifax.

Over the same period, terraced homes have piled 41% onto their value, semi-detached homes have added 32% bungalows have added 28% and detached homes have seen their value increase by 21%.

The ballooning price of a flat appears to have prompted some first-time buyers to favour other types of property, which perhaps may also suit them better in the longer term as they start a family.

Halifax found that semi-detached homes have risen in popularity among first-time buyers, accounting for 28% of purchases in the first half of 2015 compared with 21% in the first half of 2005. By contrast, flats accounted for 23% of first-time buyer purchases in the first half of 2015, down from 30% in the first half of 2005.

Martin Ellis, a housing economist at Halifax, said: "First-time buyers have switched to some extent away from flats - reflecting their large price increases - towards semi-detached homes over the last decade."

Much of the reason for the big increase in the average price of a flat is down to the London market, where flats make up around half of property sales.

The average price of a flat in London is £370,281, while buyers can snap up a typical flat in the North of England, the East Midlands, Yorkshire and the Humber and Wales for less than £120,000.

While flats were found to be the best-performing property type over the past decade in London, Scotland and the South West of England, other property types came out top in other regions.

Semi-detached properties outstripped other property types in the South East, East Anglia and the East Midlands. Terraced homes were the best-performers in Wales as well as the North of England, the North West, Yorkshire and the Humber and the West Midlands.

The figures were taken from Halifax's house price database.



More on AOL Money:

Here's what £1,000 in rent gets you around the world​

Flat with horror past is up for rent: would you live there?​

Average house asking price soars to nearly £295,000

World's Most Expensive Apartment Will Reportedly Sell For Over $400M
World's Most Expensive Apartment Will Reportedly Sell For Over $400M

Advertisement