HOUSE prices continued to fall across the region in April, but amid signs that the rate at which they are dropping could be easing.

Latest figures from the Land Registry revealed the average home in England and Wales cost £152,898 in April, down 0.3 per cent from the month before – the smallest drop for more than a year.

In Stoke-on-Trent, the average transaction fell by just 0.2 per cent, from £80,611 to £80,436.

It means prices have fallen by 13.5 per cent, from £92,975, since April last year.

That compares favourably with the national average, which has seen a 16.2 per cent drop.

House prices in Staffordshire fell by 0.5 per cent from March to April, from £131,472 to £130,846. Across the year, transactions were down 14.5 per cent, from £153,113.

In the Cheshire East area, which covers Congleton, Crewe and Nantwich, the monthly fall in prices was considerably higher than the national average, at 1.6 per cent.

The average home cost £148,279 in April, down from £150,706 in March. Over 12 months, prices dropped by 14.8 per cent, from £174,001.

The figures are the latest in a series of relatively upbeat housing market reports.

Last week Halifax reported a 2.6 per cent jump in UK prices during May, while building society Nationwide revealed a 1.2 per cent rise, the second increase in three months.