Cities have driven house price growth in the UK this year, leaving the suburbs lagging behind, according to research.

Since the start of the year, as people have gradually returned to the office, property prices across Britain’s cities have typically grown by 9.2%, compared with 7.9% growth on average in surrounding areas, lender Halifax said.

Andrew Asaam, mortgages director at Halifax, said a trend of people looking for greener spaces to move to, which was seen early on in the coronavirus pandemic, has remained intact.