HOUSE prices in Bury have soared 13.1% in the last year, according to the latest figures.

Data provided by the Land Registry shows that the average selling price for a house in the borough was £169,750 in July, compared to £150,148 in July 2016.

This is the joint sixth highest rise in the country, with Blackburn with Darwen the only other area in the north to experience a sharper increase (13.9%).

The rate compares favourably to that of neighbouring towns Bolton (1.1%), Rochdale (5.1%), and Salford (8.4%).

The rise means that the average house in Bury now costs more than it does in Manchester, where the average is £161,802.

Across the whole of Greater Manchester, the average house price went up by 6.4% to £160,029.

However, the number of sales in Bury dipped from 208 to 206 during the same period, a fall of 1%.

According to the figures, Bury is now the third most expensive place to live in Greater Manchester after Stockport and Trafford.

Bryn Weale, the owner of Bury estate agency Weale & Hitchen, says that he has noticed a price increase in certain years, which he puts down to the rising demand to live in the town.

He said: “We are seeing more people moving from outside the area, definitely with younger couples who have been priced out of other areas of Greater Manchester. Manchester ultimately is the big draw and we are only ten miles from there.

“The one thing everybody says about Bury is that we have been lucky. We had the money invested into the redevelopment of the town centre, which now draws in people from across Greater Manchester, and we are quite accessible with the motorway links.

“Ramsbottom is very much a hotspot. People come from far and wide to visit and then decide to move there. It is very limited in terms of space and it can’t expand much more than it has so the price increase is all down to the supply and demand. There is great pressure on prices because people want to live there.

“Ramsbottom is experiencing a similar impact to what Didsbury had 15 years ago. When people get pushed out of a certain area because of affordability then they will move onto another area. We can see the same effect in Whitefield and Prestwich at the moment.”

Andrew Cardwell of Cardwell’s Estate Agents said: “This percentage rise is indicative of just how far Bury has come and what a superb area it is to both live and invest in.

“At Cardwell’s we have seen a number of out of town investors buying property in the town as there is a clear optimism about the continuing growth potential.

“One of the superb things about the residential property mix in the town is that there is something for everybody from superb affordable homes to rural mansions.

“Bury is a first class place to live with a superb mix of urban and rural countryside that is unique in its position, with excellent communication links via road, motorway and Metrolink.

“The town centre has been improved almost beyond recognition over the last few years, and with that improvement have come more employment opportunities and leisure and recreational attractions to the town centre.

“The more rural areas like Ramsbottom, Tottington, and Holcombe Brook are quite unique places with wonderful village centres and popular schools.”

However, the increase isn't reflective of the housing market right across the borough, according to Neil Chapman, company director at Radcliffe-based Kingtons.

He said: “That sort of rise seems like a lot, it’s definitely just happening in pockets.

“Prices have gone up in Radcliffe because there is a shortage of houses but I wouldn’t say by that sort of figure.

“Places like Prestwich and Ramsbottom have been on the up for years and have not stopped. Those towns have had a lot investment whereas in Radcliffe they have closed the swimming baths and the schools. We are the last place that the council has decided to spend money on and I think that has had an effect on house prices.

“Hopefully with the new bus station and other investments in future, Radcliffe can join the likes of Ramsbottom and Prestwich.”