According to the report from Office for National Statistics, UK average house prices increased by 8.6% over the year to February 2021, up from 8.0% in January 2021; this is the highest annual growth rate the UK has seen since October 2014.

The average UK house price was £250,000 in February 2021; this is £20,000 higher than in February 2020.

On a non-seasonally adjusted basis, average house prices in the UK were unchanged between January and February 2021, compared with a decrease of 0.6% in the same period a year ago.

On a seasonally adjusted basis, average house prices in the UK increased by 0.5% between January and February 2021, following an increase of 0.8% in the previous month.

Average house prices increased over the year in England to £268,000 (8.7%), in Wales to £180,000 (8.4%), in Scotland to £162,000 (8.0%) and in Northern Ireland to £148,000 (5.3%).

The North West was the English region to see the highest annual growth in average house prices (11.9%), while London saw the lowest (4.6%).