The list of top 10 towns for property price growth is a diverse mix that reflects how local factors are playing an important role in the market.
Leading the results in figures recently published is Ryde on the Isle of Wight, where prices rose by 10.24% in 2018 and a property costs, on average, £242,016. The town of around 32,000, with transport links to Portsmouth and Southsea, was the only one in Zoopla’s survey to record a rise in double figures.
Second in Zoopla’s list is Smethwick, the town around four miles from the centre of Birmingham where prices went up by 9.67% last year. Properties go for an average of nearly £164,000, a good base for growth which Savills recently said would grow by 19.3% in the West Midlands over the next five years.
Diversity
Underlining the diversity of Zoopla’s findings is the Norfolk town of Diss appearing in third place. Prices here rose by 7.89% in 2018, and a property costs on average £311,486 in the area that is on a direct train route to London with a travel time of around 90 minutes.
Looking at the bigger picture, Zoopla’s figures say that the UK property market grew by 1.02% in 2018. Around £83bn was added to the entire market, which is now worth £8.29 trillion.
Breaking the UK down into regions, Scotland lead the way with prices rising by an average of 6.43% to an average of £195,739. Welsh property rose by just under 4% to £192,362, £8k higher than what the Principality Building Society described as an “all-time high” in October. In the East Midlands, prices have risen by a touch under 3% to stand at an average of £220,746.
Zoopla’s top 10 for 2018
| Ranking | Town | Current average value | % increase in value since January 2018 |
| 1 | Ryde, Isle Of Wight | £242,016 | 10.24% |
| 2 | Smethwick, West Midlands | £163,627 | 9.67% |
| 3 | Diss, Norfolk | £311,486 | 7.89% |
| 4 | Broadstairs, Kent | £333,212 | 7.63% |
| 5 | Pontypool, Torfaen | £162,319 | 7.52% |
| 6 | Crook, County Durham | £120,792 | 7.13% |
| 7 | Torquay, Devon | £244,414 | 7.05% |
| 8 | Driffield, East Riding Of Yorkshire | £209,406 | 6.93% |
| 9 | Brighouse, West Yorkshire | £180,739 | 6.75% |
| 10 | Motherwell, North Lanarkshire | £146,307 | 6.74% |
