HOUSE prices in West Dunbartonshire are continuing to rise, according to official statistics - despite the impact of the cost-of-living crisis.

Latest figures from the UK House Price Index show average values in West Dunbartonshire have seen continued increases over just 12 months.

But the volume of properties changing hands is down from a year earlier.

The average value of a home in the area was £137,869, up by over £10,000 in a year.

That 8.7 per cent rise is compared to a 6.9 per cent rise in neighbouring Argyll and Bute. But the £137,869 West Dunbartonshire house price remains one of the lowest in Scotland.

Inverclyde was the cheapest place to snap up a property where the average price was just £124,993.

Across Scotland as a whole, the average house price in December was £187,224, which is up by 5.7 per cent compared to a year earlier.

Latest figures also show that the number of homes sold locally has dropped as many potential buyers struggle to find their dream property.

Just 109 homes were sold in West Dunbartonshire in October, compared to 133 in the same month in 2021.

In neighbouring Argyll and Bute, 174 homes were sold in October.

A spokesperson for Registers of Scotland, which provides data for the UK House Price Index, said: “In Scotland, detached houses showed the largest annual percentage change out of all property types, increasing by 8.8 per cent in the 12 months to December 2022 to £343,000.

“Flats and maisonettes showed the lowest annual percentage change, which increased by 2.4 per cent in the year to December 2022 to an average price of £126,000.”

Property experts have said fluctuations in mortgage rates are having an impact on the housing market.

Rates jumped last autumn following the UK Government’s mini-budget, amid market turmoil.

Since then, the mortgage market has been settling down, although rises in the Bank of England base rate will put upward pressure on the cost of borrowing generally.