Average UK property prices were up £2,000 in January, according to data from Rightmove.

Britain’s biggest property website said average asking prices rose 0.7 per cent month on month in January to £297,587. Conversely, asking prices fell 2.3 per cent in December.

However, property prices in the capital were dragged down by falls in Zones 2 and 3. Sellers in Zone 3 witnessed the largest drop, with prices dipping 7.7 percent, and Zone 2 prices falling 6.4 percent.

Remaining cautious over future outlook, Miles Shipside, Rightmove director and housing market analyst, warned:

“Considering some of the gales that buffeted the market in the latter part of 2017, these early readings for 2018 show that there is currently a good following wind of search activity. To keep this year’s initial buyer momentum with you rather than against, serious sellers should note that all regions are currently selling at a slower rate than a year ago, indicating choosier buyers”.

Rightmove revealed that the average asking price for a home in London in January was £600,926, 3.5 percent lower than a year previously, and marking the biggest drop since June 2009.

In the November Autumn Statement, The Chancellor Philip Hammond announced a cut in stamp-duty for first time buyers for properties of up to £300,000.

This reduction in stamp duty and low supply has in turn offset “stretched buyer affordability” and and continued political uncertainy, Rightmove said.

In addition, the website data revealed that visits this month thus far are over nine per cent higher than the same period a year previously, averaging over four million visits each day.