Average house prices in the South West have decreased by more than £10,000 in some areas of the region during the past 12 months, a study has found.

Research by property website Rightmove reveal today (16/1) that while the national asking price for a house has increased by 0.4% to just over £224,000 since January 2011, the average house price in the Westcountry has fallen.

In January 2011 the average asking price for a house in the region was £243,000, but has fallen to £239,000 this month – an annual decrease of 1.9%, but down 3.5% on figures for the previous month.

Devon has seen the biggest drop, from £240,000 in January 2011 to £227,000 now – a decrease of more than 5%.

Yet despite an overall slump in Devon house prices, both Plymouth and Exeter saw increases, the House Price Index study found.

Prices in Exeter rose by around £11,000 on average, from £244,000 at the start of 2011 to £255,000 at the start of this year.

But Torquay was one of the worst hit areas, reporting nearly a 6% decrease, with property prices slumping from £239,000 to £225,000.

In Cornwall, however, the average price rose from £244,000 at the beginning of last year to £248,000 at the start of 2012.

Miles Shipside, Rightmove director, said: “Sellers coming to the market in the South West are still adjusting their prices downwards in an attempt to spur buyer interest – buyers who have held off may consider 2012 the year to pick up a cheaper deal.

“In popular areas there is a shortage of properties coming to market, which may help to underpin prices of properties coming to market, though sellers will have to be wary in areas of over-supply, as there

is still a mortgage famine

limiting the number of buyers who can proceed.”

The study also found that while search activity is up

by 27% across the country, estate agents are marketing less than one new property per week per branch – the lowest ever seen.

Richard Copus, Westcountry regional executive for the

National Association of Estate Agents and who runs Richard Copus Estates, said he too had noticed a decline in asking prices. But he disagreed that the region was struggling to find new sellers.

“We are now only into the third week in January and

I’ve already taken on six new properties,” he said.

“The Westcountry isn’t struggling to find new sellers – myself and most of the people

I have spoken to in the industry have reported quite the opposite.

“If anything there are more properties coming on to the market at the moment which will hopefully help to match increasing interest.

“We are now living in a new era where people have accepted that the economy is not what it was and that life must go on.

“Sellers are not waiting for prices to go up any more because they just want to get on and sell their property – and that’s the same for buyers too.

“I predict a lot more properties becoming available this year.”