House prices reached a new record high of £286,000 on average in September after jumping by 6.1pc over the last year, official figures show.

The typical value of a UK property edged up by £1,000 month-on-month from a previous all-time peak of £285,000 reached in August, according to Office for National Statistics (ONS) figures.

A first-time buyer faces paying 4.3pc more for a starter home than they did a year ago, with the average price paid for a first-time buyer home standing at £216,000 in September.

Property values in England reached a new record high in September - putting them just shy of £300,000 on average - but values in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland were below their previous records.

In London, average house prices have increased by 7.2pc annually, taking them to a new record of £531,000 on average.

Property values in London are now nearly 48pc higher than their pre-economic downturn peak, reached in early 2008.

Within the UK, Northern Ireland has seen the fastest house price growth over the last year, with a 10.2pc increase taking the average price of a property there to £162,000.

But house prices in Northern Ireland are still 39.5pc below a pre-financial crisis peak reached in August 2007.

In England, house prices have increased by 6.4pc over the last year, pushing the average price of a home there to £299,000.

The East of England and the South East have seen stronger house price growth over the last 12 months than London.

In the East, prices have increased by 8.4pc annually, while in the South East they have pushed up by 7.4pc.

The North East is the only English region where house prices have yet to surpass their pre-economic downturn peak, with average values there sitting at £158,000.

In both Wales and Scotland, the average price of a home has increased by 1.1pc over the past year.

In Wales, the average house price is £175,000, while in Scotland it is £199,000. House prices in Wales and Scotland are sitting slightly below record levels seen earlier in 2015.