Bad news for anyone saving up for their first home - first-time buyers in Mendip spent an average of £286,000 - £36,000 more than a year ago, and £81,000 more than in October 2017.

And overall, house prices increased by 2.9% – more than the average for the South West – in Mendip in October, new figures show.

The rise contributes to the longer-term trend, which has seen property prices in the area grow by 14.6% over the last year.

The average Mendip house price in October was £355,250, Land Registry figures show – a 2.9% increase on September.

Over the month, the picture was different to that across the South West, where prices increased 0.5%, and Mendip was above the 0.3% rise for the UK as a whole.

Over the last year, the average sale price of property in Mendip rose by £45,000 – putting the area 15th among the South West's 29 local authorities with price data for annual growth.

Average UK house prices increased by 12.6% in the year to October, accelerating from 9.9% in September.

The increase in the annual percentage change was partly caused by a sharp fall in average house prices in October 2021, following changes to stamp duty.

The average UK house price was £296,400 in October, which was £33,000 higher than a year earlier.

Tom Bill, head of UK residential research at Knight Frank, said: "Despite today's figures, double-digit UK house price growth is now a thing of the past.

"Even as the reverberations of the mini-budget fade, a more adverse lending landscape is emerging after 13 years of ultra-low rates."

Owners of detached houses saw the biggest rise in property prices in Mendip in October – they increased 3%, to £574,733 on average. Over the last year, prices rose by 15.1%.

Buyers paid 4.7% more than the average price in the South West (£339,000) in October for a property in Mendip. Across the South West, property prices are higher than those across the UK, where the average cost £296,000.

A spokesperson for Zoopla said: "The fallout from the mini-budget has clearly delivered a shock to sellers and buyers.

"New sales have been more resilient than some may have expected. Committed buyers and sellers continue to bring homes to the market and agree on deals, although these are fewer in number and harder to negotiate and hold together over the buying cycle.

"Fall-through rates are higher but not unmanageable for agents. Our data shows that one in 15 homes formerly sold is returning to the market after the original sale has fallen through.

"All the leading supply and demand indicators we measure continue to point to a rapid slowdown from very strong market conditions. We do not see any evidence of forced sales or the need for a large, double digit reset in UK house prices in 2023. We still expect house price falls of up to 5% in 2023."