February saw the average house price across England and Wales climb by 1.5% to reach a new record of £361,767.

According to the latest e.surv Acadata House Price Index, annual growth slowed to 6.9% in February, having sat at 7.3% in January.

Four areas across England and Wales saw an increase in their annual rate of growth, which were Yorkshire and the Humber up 0.5% to 5.3%, the South West up 1.2% to 7.2%, Greater London up 2.1% to 8.0% and the South East up 1.9% to 11.7%.

e.surv director, Richard Sexton, said that the latest data highlights a “shifting change in attitude” with regard to where and how people decide to live and work.

“There is a huge lack of supply in the market and yet, in many parts of the country, there is still high demand for properties that offer more space and a garden but also access to places of work” Sexton commented.

“Our data is showing evidence now that while some areas, like Wales, continue to offer excellent value and rural living, we are seeing a demand for properties that offer a good working from home environment but remain in reach of our cities.

“Some commentators have pointed out that offices are well-liked working environments, and it is long journeys that deter people from commuting. It stands to reason then that the ‘perfect commute’ will command a good price and hybrid working arrangements will clearly benefit commuter belt towns.”

e.surv’s data showed that the South East has seen the highest rate of growth over the last 12 months. This is the first time that both Greater London and the South East have been included in the top four areas of house price growth since August 2020.

Sexton added: “In our granular analysis of the South East, we see that Sevenoaks in Kent has a similar journey time to Woking of 35 minutes into London. The average house price in Sevenoaks is £605,000, which is similar to that of Woking at £603,000 and Epsom and Ewell, which again has a similar journey time and an average price of £595,489.

“This suggests that there is a close correlation between rail commuting times into Central London and house prices. If hybrid working is the future of office working then easy commuting will be an essential pre-requisite of many homebuyers.”

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