House prices in Gravesham and Dartford decreased markedly in March.

In Gravesham prices fell by 2.2%, contributing to a 0.3% fall over the last 12 months.

While in Dartford there was a fall of 2.7%, despite the borough witnessing a 0.6% rise in the past year.

The latest data from the Office of National Statistics (ONS) shows that the average property in Gravesham sold for £274,438 - significantly higher than the UK average of £224,144.

In Dartford the average price was £297,753.

Across the South East, property prices have risen by 3.3% in the last year, to £320,682. The region underperformed compared to the UK as whole, which saw the average property value increase by 4.2%.

The data comes from the House Price Index, which the ONS compiles using house sale information from the Land Registry, and the equivalent bodies in Scotland and Northern Ireland.

The average homeowner in Gravesham will have seen their property jump in value by around £91,000 in the past five years, while in Dartford that figure is £110,000.

The figures also showed that buyers who made their first step onto the property ladder in Gravesham in March spent an average of £238,728. Dartford's figure was £271,266.

Between January and December last year, the most recent 12 months for which sales volume data is available, 1,339 homes were sold in Gravesham, 4% fewer than in the previous year.

Between February last year and January, 2,369 homes were sold in Dartford, 1% fewer than the previous year.

Addressing the national picture, Lawrence Bowles, the associate director of the research team at the estate agents Savills said: "Generally, we are seeing somewhat slower growth than we have been previously.

"Despite much stronger consumer confidence in the spending power of the pound, last month we saw the 12th consecutive month of lower buyer enquiries, and seventh of sales enquiries.

"The ongoing Brexit negotiations form a big part of that, but it is also related to the signs from the Bank of England that we are likely to see the base rates increase, and the knock-on effect that will have on the mortgage rates."

The highest house prices in the country in February were found in Elmbridge, where properties sold for an average of £575,192 - 6 times the cost of a home in East Ayrshire, where the average home cost just £95,189.