Homeowners in Tony Blair’s constituency suffered the largest falls in house prices seen in the UK last year.

According to figures published today by the Nationwide, while prices throughout the whole of England rose by nearly 2 per cent, prices in the North fell by 2.1 per cent in 2005, with the biggest local fall seen in Sedgefield, which the Prime Minister has represented as an MP since 1983.

"The price falls in Sedgefield are a reflection of the poorer economic condictions in the area and a weaker labour market," Fionnuala Earley, Nationwide's group economist, told Times Online. "The North East is one of the poorest regions in the UK."

Ms Earley added that prices had also fallen back after overshooting. House price inflation carried on rising in the North for longer than the UK as a whole. It reached a peak of more than 36 per cent at the start of 2003, significantly higher than the 26 per cent peak in the UK as a whole, according to Nationwide.

Overall, the lender's figures reinforced suggestions that the property market has achieved a soft landing. Price growth in England came in at a subdued 1.8 per cent for the whole of 2005, while prices fell a shade in Wales, by 0.1 per cent.

However, there were still areas where prices forged ahead. Property prices grew by 13.2 per cent in Northern Ireland and 9.3 per cent in Scotland in 2005.

Dundee and Angus saw the fastest rate of house price growth in Britain, spiralling by 24.5 per cent. In England, the fastest growth was seen in the City of Manchester, where prices rose by 11.9 per cent.

Tony Blair owns a six-bedroomed house in Sedgefield. His constituency’s soft housing market will add to the Prime Minister's already mixed record when it comes to investing in property.

In 2002, the Prime Minister was involved in scandal when it was revealed that the convicted fraudster Peter Foster had helped his wife, Cherie Blair, negotiate the purchase of two luxury flats in Bristol. In 2004, the Blairs spent £3.6 million on a Georgian townhouse in Connaught Square in London, with a mortgage reportedly secured on Mr Blair's future earnings. Amid suggestions the Blairs had overpaid some analysts said the purchase represented on of the enduring political mysteries of the year: why buy at the top of the property cycle?

However, the outlook in 2006 for property owners such as the Blairs looks reasonably bright, according to the Nationwide. The lender said today that house price growth accelerated in the final quarter of 2005. Prices increased by 1.5 per cent between October and December, their fastest quarterly increase for more than a year.

Compared with the fourth quarter last year prices were 3.2 per cent higher, making the price of a typical house in the UK £158,745. Prices accelerated in all of the UK regions in the final quarter, with the exception of the Wales, Northern and East Midlands regions where prices all fell.

The more positive data followed a report from the Halifax yesterday which showed that property prices had risen at their fastest annual pace for seven months during December.

Average house prices nationwide jumped by 1 per cent last month, on the heels of a similar gain in November, according to the survey from the nation’s biggest lender.

Looking ahead, Nationwide said the rate of house price growth across the UK to differ according to the strength of local jobs markets, ranging from falls of 2 per cent to gains of 5 per cent.

According to Nationwide first time buyers in Greater London find it hardest to afford to buy. More than 66 per cent of take home pay is eaten up in mortgage payments compared to only 33 per cent in Scotland.

But affordability improved in London and the South East in 2005. During the year the proportion of take home pay taken up by mortgage payments fell by more than 2.5 percentage points in London. Due to rapidly increasing prices, affordability deteriorated most in Northern Ireland where mortgage payments account for 44.2 per cent of take home pay compared to 40 per cent at the end of 2004.