House prices increased by 1.5 per cent in Cumbria in December, new figures show.

The boost contributes to the longer-term trend, which has seen property prices in the area achieve 8.8 per cent annual growth.

The average Cumbria house price in December was £170,870, Land Registry figures show – a 1.5 per cent increase on November, compared to £183,727 for the North West and £251,500 in the UK.

Over the month, the picture was less good than that across the North West, where prices increased 2.5 per cent, but Cumbria outperformed the 1.2 per cent rise for the UK as a whole.

Over the last year, the average sale price of property in Cumbria rose by £14,000 – putting the area 16th among the North West’s 43 local authorities for annual growth.

The best annual growth in the region was in Eden, where property prices increased on average by 15.5 per cent, to £226,000. At the other end of the scale, properties in Lancaster gained 4.2 per cent in value, giving an average price of £167,000.

Owners of terraced houses saw the biggest improvement in property prices in Cumbria in December as they increased 1.6 per cent, to £133,527 on average.