The city’s house prices dropped by 0.8% – more than the average for the East of England – in November, new figures show.
The drop contributes to the longer-term trend, which has seen property prices in the area suffer a 4.3% annual decline.
The average St Albans house price in November was £576,975, Land Registry figures show – a 0.8% decrease on October.
Over the month, the picture was different to that across the East of England, where prices decreased 0.2%.
The area is 31st among the East of England’s 45 local authorities with price data for annual growth.
The highest annual growth in the region was in Maldon, where property prices increased on average by 6.1%, to £442,000. At the other end of the scale, properties in Stevenage lost 9% of their value, giving an average price of £322,000.
First steps on the property ladder
First-time buyers in St Albans spent an average of £434,000 on their property – £20,000 less than a year ago, but £44,000 more than in November 2018.
By comparison, former owner-occupiers paid £694,000 on average in November – 60% more than first-time buyers.
Property types
Owners of detached houses saw the biggest fall in property prices in St Albans in November – they dropped 1.6% in price, to £1,138,083 on average. Over the last year, prices dropped by 4.8%.
Among other types of property:
Semi-detached: down 1.1% monthly; down 3.6% annually; £701,635 average
Terraced: down 0.6% monthly; down 3.4% annually; £514,830 average
Flats: up 0.1% monthly; down 5.2% annually; £308,368 average
How do property prices in St Albans compare?
Buyers paid more for properties in St Albans than anywhere else in the East of England in November. The average price paid would buy 2.7 homes in Great Yarmouth (£213,000), at the other end of the scale.
The highest property prices across the UK were in Kensington and Chelsea.
Across the East of England, property prices are high compared to those across the UK, where the average cost is £285,000.
Factfile
Average property price in November
St Albans: £576,975
The East of England: £346,659
UK: £284,950
Annual change to November
St Albans: -4.3%
The East of England: -3.3%
UK: -2.1%
Highest and lowest annual growth in the East of England
Maldon: +6.1%
Stevenage: -9%
