Shropshire house prices up by 19pc in last decade

Research from Nationwide has revealed the average price of a house in the county, including Telford & Wrekin, now stands at £174,235.

Prices are up four per cent for the final quarter of 2013, when compared to the comparative period in 2012.

By comparison, the average price of a house in Mid and West Wales is now £146,891, the figures claimed – a 24 per cent increase in the last decade, while Herefordshire was among the few areas to suffer a fall in the last quarter, with an average figure of £185,227.

Nationally, the average house is now worth £174,444, a 7.1 per cent increase on the same time last year.

London remains the most expensive place to buy a house, with the average property costing £345,186, whereas the North East and Cumbria prop up the list with an average price of £115,417.

The West Midlands now has an average property value of £153,965 – a 2.7 per cent rise in the last quarter.

But the latest figures have been greeted with caution by estate agents in the county, who said prices still lay well below "pre-crash" levels.

Nationwide said house prices in the county have gone up 19 per cent over the past 10 years. According to the Land Registry's House Price Index, the average value of a home in Shropshire in late 2003 was £136,947.

Bruce Attwood, of Shropshire estate agents Berriman Eaton, said: "While the market may be picking up, sales are still far below pre-crash levels.

"Of course, they may not get back there and house prices could still continue to rise too fast.

"The other point to highlight is that while there can be little doubt that much of London and the south east are firmly in bubble territory, much of the rest of Britain's heavily localised property markets remain depressed.

"Whenever there is an upside, it's rarely all good news. As buyers are confident and sellers are keen to get the most for their property, getting deals becomes really tough."