House prices across the BCP rose more than the South West average in March

The average house price in Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole in March was £328,953, according to Land Registry figures, an increase of 1.5% on February.

During the month, the situation was better than in the South West, where prices rose by 0.1% and Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole exceeded the rise of 0.3% for the UK as a whole.

Over the past year the average sale price of a property in Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole has risen by £32,000, putting the area 22nd out of 29 local authorities in the South West with price data for the annual growth.

The best annual growth in the area was recorded in Torridge, where house prices rose by an average of 20.8%, to £305,000. At the other end of the scale, properties in West Devon gained just 5.7% in value to an average price of £293,000.

Owners of semi-detached homes saw the biggest improvement in property prices in Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole in March, they rose 2% to an average of £352,876. Over the past year, prices have increased by 12.7%.

Other types of goods experienced similar growth:

• Individual: increase of 1.6% per month; up 13.6% per year; £556,200 on average
• Semi-detached: up 1.6% per month; up 10.7% per year; £285,897 on average
• Apartments: up 1.3% per month; up 7.3% per year; £209,178 on average

First-time buyers in Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole spent an average of £253,000 on their property, £23,000 more than a year ago and £40,000 more than in March 2017.

By comparison, former homeowners paid £376,000 on average in March, 48.5% more than first-time buyers.

Buyers paid 4.8% more than the average price in the South West (£314,000) in March for property in Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole.

In the South West, property prices are higher than in the UK, where the average cost is £278,000.

The highest house prices in the UK were in Kensington and Chelsea.