House prices in Peterborough rose as coronavirus lockdown started

The ​boost ​contributes to the longer-term trend, which has seen property prices in the city ​achieve 3.7 per cent annual growth​.

The price rise co-incided with the start of UK lockdown on March 23 which saw a ban on house sales, although that has since been lifted.

The average Peterborough house price in March was £197,118, Land Registry figures show​ – a 0.4 per cent increase on February.

Over the month, the picture was ​similar to that across the East of England where prices ​remained static​, and Peterborough outperformed the 0.2 per cent drop for the UK as a whole.

Over the last year, the average sale price of property in Peterborough ​​rose by £7,000 – putting the ​area 12th among the East of England’s 47 local authorities for annual growth.

​The best annual growth in the region was in Uttlesford, where properties increased on average by 6.2 per cent to £418,000. ​At the other end of the scale, properties in King’s Lynn and West Norfolk dropped 5.6 per cent in value, giving an average price of £204,000.

First-time buyers in Peterborough spent an average of £​166,200 on their property – ​£5,800 more than a year ago, ​and ​£40,400 more than in March 2015.

By comparison, former owner-occupiers paid £​221,900 on average in March​ – 33.5 per cent more than first-time buyers.

Buyers in Peterborough paid 32.3 per cent less than the average price in the East of England (£291,000) in March for a property in Peterborough. Across the East of England, property prices are lower than those across the UK, where the average cost £232,000.

The highest property prices across the UK were in Kensington and Chelsea, where the average March sale price of £1.4 million could buy 16 properties in Burnley (average £86,000).

Average property price in March

Peterborough: £197,118

East of England: £291,254

UK: £231,855

Annual growth to March

Peterborough: +3.7%

East of England: +1.6%

UK: +2.1%.