PROPERTY prices across Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole have rocketed by more than seven per cent in a year.

The average property in the area now stands at £298,570.

The latest figures available cover November last year and reveal a 1.6 per cent increase on October.

Over the month, the picture was better than that across the South West, where prices increased 1.1 per cent. Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole also outperformed the 1.2 per cent rise for the UK as a whole.

Over the last year, the average sale price of property in Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole rose by £20,000 – putting the area 14th among the South West’s 32 local authorities for annual growth.

The best annual growth in the region was in Bath and North East Somerset, where property prices increased on average by 14.5 per cent, to £382,000. At the other end of the scale, properties in Gloucester gained 1.6 per cent in value, giving an average price of £212,000.

Owners of detached houses saw the biggest improvement in property prices in Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole in November – they increased 1.8 per cent, to £494,208 on average. Over the last year, prices rose by 9.2per cent.

Semi-detached properties rose by 8.2 per cent over the year to £314,427, terraced homes went up by 8.1 per cent to an average of £258,256 and flats rose 1.5 per cent to £195,460.

First-time buyers in Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole spent an average of £231,000 on their property – £14,000 more than a year ago, and £35,000 more than in October 2015.

By comparison, former owner-occupiers paid £339,000 on average in November – 46.8 per cent more than first-time buyers.

The highest property prices across the UK were in Kensington and Chelsea, where the average November sale price of £1.5 million could buy 16 properties in Blaenau Gwent (average £95,000).