British homeowners lose £300 billion since January

- Average home value down £44 per day so far this year -

New figures released today show that the average value of homes in Britain has been falling by £43.84 every day since the beginning of the year, wiping a staggering £300 billion (£1.25 billion per day) in value day of f the housing market since January 1st, according to Zoopla.co.uk.

As the property market continues to battle against the fallout from the global credit crunch, the figures show that property values in England have fallen most, down £11,343 since the beginning of the year or £46.49 per day on average, with values in Wales dropping by an average of £10,742 or £44.02 per day since January. Scottish property prices have fared slightly better losing 'only' £4,928 or £20.20 per day on average over the same period.

Zoopla.co.uk, the UK's leading house prices website, which provides free current value estimates for every UK home, has released the results of its research showing the most/least affected areas of the country by analysing the year to date value changes in every area of Britain.

Berkshire has been the hardest hit county in England so far in 2008, with the average home recording a daily loss of £75.51, or a weekly value drop of £528.57. Dorset has also suffered from the recent slump with average values down £64.58 per day or £452.06 per week since the start of the year.

Hardest hit areas in England

Source: Zoopla.co.uk

The worst performing county in Wales, Merioneth has seen £20,193 wiped off of the average house price since the beginning of the year, or a daily drop of £82.76 - nearly double the national average. The Mid Wales county of Brecknockshire has also experienced a significant fall of £15,871, or £65.05 daily in average home values.

Hardest hit areas in Wales

Source: Zoopla.co.uk

In Scotland, despite a relatively low average fall across the country compared to England and Wales, the counties of Berwickshire and East Lothian have been hit the hardest, with daily depreciation on the average home coming in at £76.77 and £64.77 respectively.

Hardest hit areas in Scotland

Source: Zoopla.co.uk

Amongst the different types of properties, detached houses in England have suffered the most, losing £71.68 per day on average over the past 8 months (£17,489) whilst flats in Wales have been the biggest percentage losers, down 9.23% or an average of £14,209 since January.

Value change by property type since Jan 1st 2008

Source: Zoopla.co.uk

However, the Zoopla.co.uk analysis also reveals pockets of Britain where values have held steady since earlier this year, either down only marginally or in a handful of cases actually seeing a rise in values. Most notably, Peterhead in Aberdeenshire has seen house prices increase by 1.22 per cent since January, whilst Banstead in Surrey has also seen an increase of 0.82 per cent over the same period.

Best performing towns in Britain

Source: Zoopla.co.uk

Alex Chesterman, CEO of Zoopla.co.uk, commented:

"It is clear from our latest figures that the recent drop in home values has not reversed course in recent weeks and whilst in some areas the fall is accelerating we do see some bright spots where the drop in values appears to be slowing. With every part of the country performing differently, Zoopla.co.uk provides the ultimate resource for anyone interested in house prices by allowing users to track the value of any individual home - theirs or anyone else's - along with local information and market trends."

- Ends -

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Notes to Editor

Zoopla Awards

• Winner: 'UK's Most Promising Internet Company 2008' (First Tuesday)

• Nominated: 'Socially Powered Site of the Year' (.net Magazine)

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