House prices in Pembrokeshire have increased by more than a 13 per cent annually, according to the latest statistics from Principality, including a 1.5 per cent quarterly increase.

Pembrokeshire’s annual growth was 13.1 per cent, compared to the Wales average of three per cent, and the annual average of 9.7 per cent.

Elsewhere in west Wales, Ceredigion saw a 13.0 per cent annual increase, with a three per cent quarterly increase, while Carmarthenshire had a 13.6 per cent annual increase with a 6.4 quarterly increase.

Carmarthenshire’s 6.4 per cent for the quarter is the second highest across Wales, to Monmouthshire’s 14.4 per cent increase for between January and March 2022.

Monmouthshire also recorded the biggest increase in Wales across the year, with 18.8 per cent.

Pembrokeshire’s 13.1 per cent annual increase is the fifth highest across Wales, with steep increases also recorded in Merthyr Tydfil (13.4 per cent) and Blenau Gwent (13.2 per cent).

The average house price in Pembrokeshire is currently £260,426, compared to neighbours Carmarthenshire’s £218,698 and Ceredigion’s £264,005.

Across the whole of Wales, Denbighshire is the only county to record an annual decrease, of 5.9 per cent specifically, with a quarterly decrease of 4.1 per cent.

Meanwhile, the so-called ‘race for space’ prompted by the pandemic has slowed, with a significant drop in sales of detached houses compared with a year earlier, down from 4,200 to 3,100.

The number of semi-detached houses sold is also lower than a year ago, down 10 per cent, while the sale of flats has risen sharply by 26 per cent. 

Tom Denman, chief financial officer at Principality Building Society, said: “Despite the strong headline performance, the underlying data gives some support to the view that the market in Wales may be beginning to slow.

“With cost-of-living pressures mounting and consumer confidence falling, it is possible that demand within Wales is moderating. 

“None of this should be taken to mean that the market is moving into recession, far from it, but there is a sense here of a slowing market.

“The question now is whether households will hold back either entering the housing market or trading up due to the current uncertain conditions.”