Some house prices in Huddersfield appear to have slumped by more than a quarter – yet others are on the rise.

The huge disparity has shown up after we revealed the area’s most expensive and cheapest streets in yesterday’s Examiner.

Figures released by the Land Registry showed that some of Huddersfield’s postcode areas showed a significant rise in prices, while others slumped.

Some areas of the Holme Valley saw up to a quarter of the value of their houses wiped out in 2013. Properties in HD9 2 around Holmfirth slumped 27.8% to an average of £154,250. Other areas which saw the value of their houses fall by 10% or more were HD9 1, HD9 6, HD1 6 and HD7 5.

And in Dewsbury in the six months to September prices have slumped by 7% .

Meanwhile, houses in HD4 7 – covering Armitage Bridge , Berry Brow and South Crosland –  did the best, showing a 15% rise over 2012, which brought the average sale price to £165,000. Another good area was HD6 3 (Bradley, Rastrick and Brighouse), moving up over 12% to £137,000.

Crosland Moor has been revealed as the cheapest place to buy a home in the town, with properties on Blackmoorfoot Road selling for just £37,000.

At the other end of the scale you’ll have to fork out just short of £350,000 to live in places such as Woodsome Park,  Fenay Bridge, or Le Marchant Avenue in Lindley.

Click here to find out which streets in Huddersfield were the cheapest and most expensive in the last year.

Meg Plummer, of  One17 Residential in Armitage Bridge, said: “A house at Delamere Gardens in Fixby sold in excess of £1.3m, with two additional properties being sold in the latter part of the year – one in excess of £900,000 and the other in excess of £1.2m – which are not yet showing in published land registry figures. 

“This makes the average sales figure for the properties sold on Delamere Gardens in 2013 in excess of £1,150,000.  

“By my calculation, this makes Delamere Gardens the most expensive street in town.”

Prices remained fairly static in 2013 but now agents are optimistic that 2014 will be a good year for the Huddersfield housing market, with prices rising a modest 2% to 3%.

Click on the map below to see the average sold price changes for some postcode areas

 

According to the estate agents, the fact that streets are cheap does not mean that these streets are the least desirable in the town. The prices reflect the fact that most of the houses are small back-to-back terraces and the area is densely populated, so there is plenty of supply, keeping prices down.

Also, many of them are being bought at a low price by investors who spend perhaps £10,000 renovating them to rent out to tenants.

Alex McNeil, partner at Bramleys, said: “Our sales volume in December 2013 was double that for December 2012.

“The government Help to Buy scheme is also a catalyst and has now been extended to second-hand houses and not just first-time buyers. We will probably see a price rise in Huddersfield this year, with houses in the traditionally good areas going up a little bit and cheaper houses eventually going up. Apartments probably won’t increase as there are too many of them.”

Raymond Butterworth, proprietor at Boultons, added: “There are no real surprises (in the most expensive and cheapest houses), but you have to be very careful with statistics as they can get skewed.

“The cheapest prices reflect the nature and size of the houses. Almost certainly, some of them are ex-rental properties or deceased estates where people have lived there for a long time. They are capable of renovation and these streets are high-density with lots of availability.

“At the top end of the market, it does not mean these are the best streets in town.

“Get in now is my advice. If you want to sell and weren’t able to, the chances are better now – economic confidence is returning. From the buyers’ point of view, buy now before prices do rise.”

He forecast increased volume in the £100,000-to-£200,000 bracket but thought that apartments in mill conversions would continue to struggle as too many were created eight to 10 years ago.

Chris Jowett, of ExpertHomeSales.co.uk, said: “There are more first-time buyers, but they are still a very small percentage compared with seven years ago.

“Factors affecting them are job security and affordability of a deposit. People are still struggling and  the Government is trying to bump up the housing market.”

He added that there was massive oversupply in the apartment market.

“The market has been flooded and people have had their fingers burned very badly,” he said.

“The fall in their value has been dramatically greater than houses, although purpose-built apartments will hold their value much better.”

Which were Kirklees' most expensive (and cheapest) streets last year? Find out here

Which were Calderdale's most expensive (and cheapest) streets last year? Find out here