Property prices increased by 18.5% in London year-on-year compared to 6.7% overall.
Indeed, despite media reports of a London slowdown they grew by 2.5% monthly from April compared to 0.4% overall.
Jeremy Duncombe, director at Legal and General Mortgage Club, said: “Fears of a house price bubble continue to dominate the news agenda. Worries about London and the South East seem to be causing policymakers to seriously consider intervention.
“However, while measures that encourage sensible lending are always a good thing it must be remembered that the UK housing market extends far beyond the capital and its environs.
“Any far reaching changes do run the risk of putting a halt to recovery in other areas of the country and nurturing that is just as big a concern as the London and south east market overheating.
“The only way that we can build a sustainable and balanced housing market is by building more homes and all efforts must be made to get builders building.”
Average house prices in England and Wales stood at £172,035 compared to the November 2007 peak of £181,518.
The North East saw the lowest annual price growth of 0.9%, while month-on-month Yorkshire and the Humber saw prices tumble by 0.9%
David Brown, commercial director of LSL Property Services, said: “The property industry will still take some time to recover fully from the longest recession on record – and construction will only pick up more swiftly after the purchase market has demonstrated its stability.
“In the meantime the rental market is efficiently providing homes in centres of employment – and rents are now only rising in line with wages. But in the purchase or the rental market, the legacy of the credit crunch will still linger if we don’t build more homes quickly.”
Repossession volumes decreased by 37% in March 2014 to 987 compared with 1,560 in March 2013, with the greatest fall coming in the East Midlands.
