House prices increased 8.2 per cent in the year ending May 2010, according to figures from Land Registry.

May was the seventh month in a row in which the annual figure had increased and takes the average property value in England and Wales to £165,314.

On a month-by-month basis house prices in May fell 0.2 per cent from April, the first price decrease since April 2009.Unsurprisingly, the region with the highest annual price change was London with an increase of 14.2 per cent.

The south east experienced the greatest monthly rise with a movement of 0.9 per cent. The east Midlands region experienced the most significant monthly price fall with a movement of -3.6 per cent.