£1,000 hit for Hartlepool home owners

The Office for National Statistics data shows the median house price in the area was £128,000 in the year to June – down from £129,000 the year before – and one of fewer than a dozen places in England and Wales to see a drop in average prices.

More recent data has shown a recovery in the housing market and the figures also reveal a range of price differences across the area.

These ranged from:

*The Fens, Elwick and Hart: £225,000 – up from £202,000 in 2019-20

*Wooler Road: £188,000 – up from £175,000

*Clavering: £156,000 – an increase from £144,000

*Seaton Carew: £143,000 – falling from £161,000

*Owton Manor: £119,000 – up from £97,500

The area recording the lowest average house price was Harbour and Victoria, where homes sold for around £51,000 in 2020-21.

The figures also show the number of homes sold in Hartlepool rose year-on-year, from 1,026 to 1,193.

The largest proportion were in The Fens, Elwick and Hart, where 217 homes changed hands in the period.

Martin Beck, chief economic adviser of economic forecasting group EY Item Club, said home owners should not bank on 2022 bringing big increases.

He said: “The prospect of a series of interest rate rises by the Bank of England will translate into higher mortgage rates.

“Cost of living pressures faced by households from rising inflation and taxes will mean fewer people will be able to afford to borrow the necessary amount they need to buy at higher mortgage rates.”