HOUSE prices across west Wales have risen to record highs with Ceredigion currently having some of the highest house prices in Wales.

Latest figures released by the Principality Building Society show that the average house price in Ceredigion rose by three per cent between January and March, taking the annual increase to 13 per cent.

This means that the average house price in Ceredigion currently stands at £264,005, with only Cardiff, Monmouthshire and the Vale of Glamorgan having higher average prices.

Carmarthenshire recorded the highest house price increase both annually (13.6 per cent) and quarterly (6.4 per cent) to a new peak of £218,698. In Pembrokeshire, the average house price rose to a peak of £260,426 following a 13.1 per cent annual increase and more modest 1.5 per cent quarterly rise.

Elsewhere, Gwynedd recorded a 5.2 per cent increase in the first quarter of 2022 and an annual increase of 8.7 per cent, with the average house price now standing at £229,967 -more than £30,000 less than Ceredigion.

Powys saw a drop in house prices in the first quarter of 2022 of three per cent with prices currently 1.7 per cent up on last year, with the average house costing £248,963.

Across Wales, house prices rose three per cent in the first quarter of 2022 and by 9.7 per cent based on the same time last year to a new record average price of £233,361.

Housing protest
Protests have been held in Aberystwyth against the rising cost of houses in rural Wales (Cymdeithas yr Iaith)

However, transactions in the first quarter are estimated to have been four per cent lower than a year earlier, the second quarter in a row of lower sales.

Tom Denman, Chief Financial Officer at Principality Building Society, said: “Despite the strong headline performance, the underlying data gives some support to the view that the market in Wales may be beginning to slow. With cost of living pressures mounting and consumer confidence falling, it is possible that demand within Wales is moderating.

“None of this should be taken to mean that the market is moving into recession, far from it, but there is a sense here of a slowing market. The question now is whether households will hold back either entering the housing market or trading up due to the current uncertain conditions.”

Regionally, Monmouthshire reported both the highest annual and quarterly price rise of Q1, at 18.8 per cent and 14.3 per cent respectively, to a new peak price of £378,228.

Meanwhile, Denbighshire stands out as the only local authority in Wales to record a decrease in house prices annually, dropping by 5.9 per cent to £197,452. Prices dropped in Denbighshire over the quarter too by 4.1 per cent, a pattern which has continued for several quarters since its peak price in June 2021.

The so-called ‘race for space’ prompted by the pandemic has slowed, with a significant drop in sales of detached houses compared with a year earlier, down from 4,200 to 3,100. The number of semis sold is also lower than a year ago, down 10 per cent, while the sale of flats has risen sharply by 26 per cent.

For more details and an interactive map, visit - https://www.principality.co.uk/mortgages/house-price-index