St Albans has recorded one of the highest average sold prices in England since the start of the stamp duty holiday.

The median sold price in the Cathedral city between July 8 2020 and May 2021 was £585,000, putting it in 11th place on the list of 20 hotspots, behind Elmbridge in Surrey and nine areas of London.

Kensington and Chelsea secured the top spot by some margin, with a median price of £1,237,500.

The stamp duty holiday was introduced by Chancellor Rishi Sunak last July to help boost the floundering property market following the first coronavirus lockdown.

It was initially due to end in March, but was extended until June and will continue in its current tapered form until the end of September.

The analysis of Land Registry data by GetAgent revealed the 20 areas recording the highest average sold price since the temporary tax break was introduced, only three of which were outside the capital.

A total of 590,200 transactions took place across England during this period, with an average sold price of £268,500 – £500,000 in London.

Founder and CEO of GetAgent.co.uk, Colby Short, said: “We’re used to seeing London dominate where property prices are concerned and despite the region seeing the lowest increase in house prices over the last year, it continues to lead in terms of the highest sold prices achieved.

"However, the wider impact of the stamp duty holiday has been a huge boost in transaction levels and this has been felt pretty much across the board with more than 85 per cent of the nation seeing at least 1,000 homes sold since July of last year.”