HOUSE prices dropped slightly in the Maldon district in May, new figures show.

The drop does not reverse the longer-term trend, which has seen property prices in the area achieve 8.2 per cent annual growth.

The average Maldon house price in May was £360,981, Land Registry figures show – a 0.7 per cent decrease on April.

Over the month, the picture was similar to that across the East of England, where prices decreased one per cent, but Maldon underperformed compared to the 0.9 per cent rise for the UK as a whole.

Over the last year, the average sale price of property in Maldon rose by £27,000 – putting the area 20th among the East of England’s 50 local authorities for annual growth.

The best annual growth in the region was in Great Yarmouth, where property prices increased on average by 15.6%, to £197,000.

At the other end of the scale, properties in East Cambridgeshire gained 1% in value, giving an average price of £285,000.

Winners and Losers

Owners of flats fared worst in Maldon in May – they dropped 1.4 per cent in price to £161,496 on average. But over the last year, prices rose by 2.8 per cent.

Among other types of property

Detached: down 0.7 per cent monthly and up 9.1 per cent annually to £526,191 on average.

Semi-detached: down 0.6 per cent monthly and up 8.3 per cent annually to £326,381.

Terraced: down 0.8 per cent monthly and up 8.2 per cent annually to £247,324.

First steps on the property ladder

First-time buyers in Maldon spent an average of £275,000 on their property – £19,000 more than a year ago, and £60,000 more than in May 2016.

How do property prices in Maldon compare?

Buyers paid 16.4 per cent more than the average price in the East of England (£310,000) in May for a property in the district. Across the East of England, property prices are high compared to those across the UK, where the average cost £255,000.

The most expensive properties in the East of England were in Three Rivers – £547,000 on average, and 1.5 times as much as in Maldon. Three Rivers properties cost 2.8 times as much as homes in Great Yarmouth (£197,000 average), at the other end of the scale.

The highest property prices across the UK were in Kensington and Chelsea, where the average May sale price was £1.2 million.

Factfile

Average property price in May

Maldon: £360,981

The East of England: £310,200

UK: £254,624

Annual growth to May

Maldon: +8.2%

The East of England: +6.9%

UK: +10%