“The region as a whole is being driven by what’s happening in Leeds,” says Knight Frank’s Liam Bailey. “It dominates Yorkshire as an economy. Anywhere around Leeds is in demand.” The better developments in the city have seen price growth in the past 18 months, as have nearby cities such as Bradford and Halifax.

Beyond the city, the “golden triangle”, bordered by York, Leeds and Harrogate, is still going strong – a family home in this area would easily fetch more than £1m, says Bryan Jaram, director of the York office of Jackson-Stops & Staffs, although “there are quite a lot of things on at optimistic prices”. An equivalent property two years ago would have cost between £800,000 and £875,000.

Don Low, head of the Yorkshire office of County Homesearch, a property-finding company, agrees. “Some have been overegging things,” he says. “There are people who think they are in the golden triangle, but they’re not – you won’t get the same prices in Malton as you would in Harrogate.”

At the other end of the market, there is a lack of affordable homes. Both Sheffield and Hull are receiving substantial government funding to improve their housing stock.

Average property price: £142,591

Annual change: 7.2%

Predictions: Knight Frank expects both the top (£1m) and bottom (below £150,000) to perform well, while declining affordability could put a lid on price rises in the midmarket. Bailey predicts that prices overall will rise by 2%

Times recommends

• Second homes: credit crunch casualty or money-spinner?
• How I built my own sliding house
• Top 10 incentives for house buyers