The Office for National Statistics (ONS) has published its latest figures regarding the property market of the Welsh capital, Cardiff. The data, which runs to March 2025, suggests the provisional average property value has risen 5.6% year-on-year from £259,000 to £273,000.
This represents a bigger increase than the Welsh average, with the country experiencing a national rise in property values of 3.6% year-on-year.
However, this provisional figure is lower than the average sale price in Cardiff during the last 12 months, according to Sell House Fast. The portal, which helps homeowners to sell a house fast in Cardiff for a cash price, says the average property price sold in the capital during the last year is £288,224. If the real average is closer to this figure, this would equate to an 11.28% year-on-year rise.
Not since December 2022 has annual house price inflation been at such a level. Even annual house price inflation at 5.6% hasn’t been seen in the Cardiff property market since March 2023.
The trend of rising annual house price inflation appears to have returned since May 2024 when it was in negative territory (-0.4%). Easing interest rates have almost certainly supported this gradual return to house price growth.
ONS breaks down average property values by type
The ONS has also broken down the annual house price inflation in Cardiff across four different types of residential properties. Flats have experienced the highest inflation for the year to March 2025, rising over 6% to an average of £170,000.
That’s followed closely by terraced properties, which have risen almost 6% to an average sale price of £258,000. Semi-detached properties rose marginally less to an average price of £320,000, while detached homes in Cardiff now carried an average price of £519,000, having risen 5.1% year-on-year.
Private rents are on the rise again too. The average rental cost of a residential property in Cardiff as of April 2025 was £1,114, up 10.1% year-on-year. By the end of 2023, annual private rental inflation had soared from -1% in May 2022 to a peak of 14.1% in December 2023, as landlords grappled with the sudden rise in mortgage rates.
First-time buyer trends and wider market activity
Looking at the average house price for first-time buyers in Cardiff, the ONS data suggests this has risen above the UK first-time buyer average, not just the Welsh first-time buyer average. In March 2025, the typical first-time buyer property went for £236,000 compared with the £222,000 average in March 2024.
For Cardiff properties purchased with a mortgage, the average house price was £277,000 in March 2025, up 5.2% year-on-year. Property purchases in Cardiff using cash hit an average of £261,000 in March 2025, up from a revised value of £245,000 in March 2024. This is above both the UK average for cash transactions (£258,000) and the Welsh average for cash transactions (£208,000).
The ONS states that its localised housing data is based on a smaller sample size than its nationwide estimates. It advises people to look at local trends over a 12-month period or longer still to get an accurate picture of the market.
