Kensington and Chelsea house prices increased slightly in February

House prices increased slightly, by 0.6%, in Kensington and Chelsea in February, new figures show.

But the boost does not reverse the longer-term trend, which has seen property prices in the area suffer a 5.2% annual decline.

The average Kensington and Chelsea house price in February was £1,318,759, Land Registry figures show – a 0.6% increase on January.

Over the month, the picture was better than that across London, where prices decreased 1.1%, and Kensington and Chelsea outperformed the 1% drop for the UK as a whole.

Over the last year, the average sale price of property in Kensington and Chelsea fell by £72,000 – putting the area 32nd among London’s 33 local authorities with price data for annual growth.

The best annual growth in the region was in City of London, where property prices increased on average by 13.4%, to £961,000. At the other end of the scale, properties in Westminster lost 8.8% of their value, giving an average price of £968,000.

Winners and Losers

Owners of flats saw the biggest improvement in property prices in Kensington and Chelsea in February – they increased 0.7%, to £1,116,244 on average. Over the last year, prices dropped by 6.1%.

Among other types of property:

• Detached: up 0.5% monthly; down 2.5% annually; £3,880,555 average
• Semi-detached: up 0.5% monthly; down 2.5% annually; £3,989,655 average
• Terraced: down 0% monthly; down 2.6% annually; £2,634,593 average

First steps on the property ladder

First-time buyers in Kensington and Chelsea spent an average of £1,130,000 on their property – £67,000 less than a year ago, and £74,000 less than in February 2018.

By comparison, former owner-occupiers paid £1,528,000 on average in February – 35.2% more than first-time buyers.

How do property prices in Kensington and Chelsea compare?

Buyers paid more for properties in Kensington and Chelsea than anywhere else in the UK in February. The average price paid would buy 11.4 homes in 155 (£115,000), at the other end of the scale.

Across London, property prices are high compared to those across the UK, where the average cost £288,000.

Factfile

Average property price in February

• Kensington and Chelsea: £1,318,759
• London:£532,212
• UK: £287,506

Annual change to February

• Kensington and Chelsea: -5.2%
• London: +2.9%
• UK: +5.5%

Best and worst annual growth in London

• City of London: +13.4%
• Westminster: -8.8%