HOUSE prices in Blaenau Gwent have risen by 59 per cent in the last year, more than anywhere else in England or Wales.

The average price of a property in the county borough has soared from £41,646 to £66,078, according to the latest Land Registry statistics.

The Residential Property Price Report compares prices in April to June this year with the same period in 2003.

They show that the average cost of a detached house in Blaenau Gwent now stands at £133,181, a semi-detached home would cost £78,225 and a terraced house £51,735.

And the figures show 268 properties were sold in the area between April and June this year, compared to 259 during the same period last year.

Monmouthshire saw the smallest increase in house prices in Gwent - up 24 per cent from £147,312 to £182,492 - but it remains the most expensive place to buy in Wales.

A detached house there would set you back an average of £240,566. In Newport, prices were up 34 per cent, from an average of £101,380 last year to £135,565 in Torfaen. This was the sixth-highest increase in Wales.

And it was a similar story in Torfaen, with an increase of 33 per cent - up from £83,642 to £111,011.

The rise in prices in Caerphilly was 27 per cent - the same as the average increase for the whole of Wales. The county borough saw its average house price rise from £75,312 to £95,345.