HOUSE prices in Newport increased by more than the Welsh average for in July, new figures show.

The boost contributes to the longer-term trend, which has seen property prices in the area achieve 5.9 per cent annual growth.

The average Newport house price in July was £186,756, Land Registry figures show – a 1.3 per cent increase on June, and 13 per cent higher than the average price in Wales, £165,000.

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Over the month, the picture was similar to that across Wales, where prices increased by one per cent, and Newport outperformed the 0.5 per cent rise for the UK as a whole.

Over the last year, the average sale price of property in Newport rose by £10,000 – putting the area seventh among Wales’s 22 local authorities for annual growth.

Owners of flats saw the biggest improvement in property prices in Newport in July – they increased 1.8 per cent, to £107,238 on average. Over the last year, prices rose by 4.5 per cent.

Meanwhile, the average detached house price was £316,579 - up 1.2 per cent on the previous month, and 6.1 per cent compared with a year ago, while the average semi-detached house price increased by 1.1 per cent on the previous month and 6.2 per cent on the year before, at £193,971.

Terraced houses in the city increased in value by 1.5 per cent on the previous month and 5.8 per cent on 12 months earlier to £143,156.

Figures also showed first-time buyers in Newport spent an average of £159,500 on their property – £8,800 more than a year ago and £38,700 more than in July 2014.

By comparison, former owner-occupiers paid £218,900 on average in July – 37.3 per cent more than first-time buyers.

Buyers paid 13 per cent more than the average price in Wales (£165,000) in July for a property in Newport. Across Wales, property prices are lower than those across the UK, where the average cost £233,000.

The most expensive properties in Wales were in Monmouthshire – £281,000 on average, and 1.5 times as much as in Newport.

Monmouthshire properties cost three times as much as homes in Blaenau Gwent (£95,000 average), at the other end of the scale.

The highest property prices across the UK were in Kensington and Chelsea, where the average July sale price of £1.3 million could buy 15 properties in Burnley (average £84,000).

The best annual growth in the region was in Merthyr Tydfil, where properties increased on average by 12.8 per cent, to £115,000.

At the other end of the scale, properties in Cardiff gained 1.3 per cent in value, giving an average price of £209,000.

Average property price in July:

Newport: £186,756

Wales: £165,303

UK: £232,710

Annual growth to July:

Newport: +5.9 per cent

Wales: +4.2 per cent

UK: +0.7 per cent

Best and worst annual growth in Wales:

Best: Merthyr Tydfil: +12.8 per cent

Worst: Cardiff: +1.3 per cent