GWENT is home to both the most expensive and cheapest homes in Wales, new figures have revealed.

Across the five areas of Newport, Torfaen, Monmouthshire, Blaenau Gwent and Caerphilly, property prices increased by an average of 3.06 per cent between September and October.

In comparison, prices across Wales increased by 2.6 per cent over the same period, while across the UK as a whole pricetags dropped by 1.1 per cent.

Gwent is also home to both the most expensive and the cheapest homes in Wales – with the average property in Monmouthshire costing £325,000 – while just a few miles away in Blaenau Gwent buyers can expect to shell out more than £200,000 less, with the average home costing £122,000.

The best annual growth in Wales was in Merthyr Tydfil, where property prices increased on average by 24.8 per cent, to £138,000. At the other end of the scale, properties in Powys gained just 8.2 per cent in value, giving an average price of £216,000.

The highest property prices across the UK were in Kensington and Chelsea.

House price increases in October:

  • Blaenau Gwent: +4.8 per cent (£23,000);
  • Monmouthshire: +3.8 per cent (£38,000);
  • Caerphilly: +3.7 per cent (£21,000);
  • Newport: +2.2 per cent (£20,000);
  • Torfaen: +0.8 per cent (£27,000).

Average property price in October:

  • Monmouthshire: £324,841;
  • Newport: £212,365;
  • Torfaen: £182,970;
  • Caerphilly: £170,465;
  • Blaenau Gwent: £121,739;
  • Wales: £203,225;
  • UK: £268,349.

Annual growth to October:

  • Blaenau Gwent: +23.2 per cent;
  • Torfaen: +17 per cent;
  • Caerphilly: +14.1 per cent;
  • Monmouthshire: +13.4 per cent;
  • Newport: +10.4 per cent;
  • Wales: +15.5 per cent;
  • UK: +10.2 per cent.

Best and worst annual growth in Wales:

  • Merthyr Tydfil: +24.8 per cent;
  • Powys: +8.2 per cent.