By Sarah Macklin 
Looking to develop a property or make an investment buy? This new research may be of interest to you if you’re trying to make a profit through housing improvement.
Online trading platform CMC Markets has analysed property prices in 2012 compared to 2022 to find the areas within the UK that show the highest increase. They looked at house price data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) for every local authority to discover the areas with the highest increase, showing the potential for the highest return on investment (ROI). They also discovered the areas with the lowest return on investment.
In which parts of the UK have house prices increased the most?
The research has found that Waltham Forest in London has the biggest ROI for property, with the average property price increasing from £226,741 to £484,229 (113%) between 2012 and 2022.
The area with the second highest increase is Thanet, located in the county of Kent. House prices used to average around £142,273 in 2012 and this increased to £301,510 in 2022 (a rise of 111%).
Other areas that saw a rise include Barking and Dagenham (105%), Hastings (96.8%) and Hackney (96.5%).
You can find the top 10 areas of the UK that have seen the biggest increase in house prices in the table below:
| Rank | Area | Avg. house price in 2012 | Avg. house price in 2022 | % increase |
| 1 | Waltham Forest | £226,741 | £484,229 | 113.6% |
| 2 | Thanet | £142,273 | £301,510 | 111.9% |
| 3 | Barking and Dagenham | £165,049 | £340,135 | 105.9% |
| 4 | Hastings | £137,735 | £271,106 | 96.8% |
| 5 | Hackney | £315,619 | £620,147 | 96.5% |
| 6 | Medway | £147,594 | £288,804 | 95.7% |
| 7 | Dover | £157,717 | £307,570 | 95.0% |
| 8 | Bexley | £199,584 | £389,033 | 94.9% |
| 9 | City of Bristol | £174,024 | £338,773 | 94.7% |
| 10 | Thurrock | £199,584 | £314,816 | 94.4% |
Where have house prices decreased the most in the UK?
As well as looking at the areas that have seen the biggest house price increases, CMC Markets also found the areas where house prices have dropped.
If you’re looking to develop properties, then perhaps don’t buy in the City of Aberdeen. This is the area of the UK that has seen the lowest ROI, and house prices have dropped by 9.9%. The average house used to cost around £160,000 in 2012 but decreased to £144,614 in 2022.
This is the only area where prices have actually decreased. All other areas showed a very minor increase.
The second lowest increase is Inverclyde, with a small increase of 14.8%. House prices went from around £100,000 in 2012 to £115,000 in 2022. The third lowest increase is Aberdeenshire, with prices going from around £173,885 to £200,590 (15.4%).
See the table below for a full list of areas that have increased the least in the UK.
| Rank | Area | Avg. house price in 2012 | Avg. house price in 2022 | % decrease |
| 1 | City of Aberdeen | £160,525 | £144,614 | -9.9% |
| 2 | Inverclyde | £100,389 | £115,244 | 14.8% |
| 3 | Aberdeenshire | £173,885 | £200,590 | 15.4% |
| 4 | County Durham | £98,549 | £123,308 | 25.1% |
| 5 | Middlesbrough | £108,284 | £136,076 | 25.7% |
| 6 | Allerdale | £138,587 | £176,014 | 27.0% |
| 7 | Stockton-on-Tees | £120,795 | £154,304 | 27.7% |
| 8 | Angus | £128,501 | £164,658 | 28.1% |
| 9 | Carlisle | £121,571 | £156,869 | 29.0% |
| 10 | Preston | £117,591 | £153,254 | 30.3% |
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