PROPERTY prices continued to drop in Bournemouth Christchurch and Poole in June, new figures show.

The fall was just 0.1 per cent but contributes to the longer-term trend, which has seen property prices in the area suffer a 0.5 per cent annual decline.

The fall was recorded despite some areas featuring in a top 10 of coastal locations in a new survey.

The average price in the BCP area in June was £277,214, Land Registry figures show.

But the overall figure has been pulled down by the price of flats, which have gone down 2.6 per cent in a year. Houses showed slight increases.

Across the whole of the south west, prices rose by 2.9 per cent in a year.

This included the Dorset Council area which saw prices rise to an average of £293,113.

The coastal locations survey, carried out by Compare my Move, revealed Swanage was third in the top 10 with a beach rating out of five of 4.7, a top water quality level of three and an average house price of £375,818.

Poole was fifth with a 4.7 beach rating, water quality of three and a price of £361,186 and Southbourne was sixth with 4.7, three and an average price of £430,947.

The best annual price growth across the south west in June was in Bath and North East Somerset, where properties increased on average by 7.5 per cent to £355,000. At the other end of the scale, properties in West Devon dropped 1.2 per cent in value, giving an average price of £252,000.