Across the country’s regions, house price changes ranged from a 4.8 per cent decline in London and a 4.6 per cent fall in the South East, to a rise of 1.2 per cent in the North West and a slight 0.3 per cent gain in the West Midlands.
But there were much greater differences between local authorities.
This stresses the all important point – the property market doesn’t move as one, but comprises thousands of localised markets, all behaving differently.
For example, average prices in West Lancashire rose by a staggering 9.8 per cent last year, with the typical home rising from £230,000 to £253,000.
In the City of London, average house prices fell by 17.8 per cent from £975,289 to £802,000.
Some of the worst performing housing markets are to be found in London. Prices in the capital fell on average 4.8 per cent in the 12 months to December.
Average house prices in The City of London (the capital’s historic financial district) are down a whopping 17.8 per cent, according to the ONS, while the City of Westminster is down 16.1 per cent. Prices in Kensington and Chelsea are also down 13.7 per cent.
The ONS cautions against reading too much into figures for very small transaction areas, such as the City of London, as they can be skewed by a few sales.
Outside of the capital, Gosport on the south cost saw an 11.5 per cent decline in house prices. Some popular commuter hotspots also suffered, with house prices falling 11.3 per cent in Tunbridge Wells, 9.5 per cent in Welwyn and Hatfield, 9.2 per cent in Runnymede and 9.1 per cent in Surrey Heath.