THOUSANDS of North-East homeowners are finding themselves stuck with an “under water” home worth less than they paid for it.

Figures show that 93 per cent of properties in the region bought since 2006 are now worth less than their purchase price – the highest proportion in the country.

In five years, the average North-East house has lost 18 per cent – more than £30,000 – of its value.

The Northern Echo: Homes 'under water': Percentage of homes bought in past five years which are now worth less than the purchase price.

According to figures from property website zoopla.co.uk, the average North- East house is worth £149,364 today – compared to £182,341 in 2006.

The situation in North Yorkshire is not much better.

Just under 93 per cent of homes bought since 2006 are now worth less than the owner paid.

Brian Carlisle, from Yorkshire Dales estate agent JR Hopper and Co, said he did not believe any houses in his area were worth more now than in 2007.

He said: “Those estate houses that were worth £200,000 are now going for £170,000, while the beautiful houses that everybody would like to live in are down five or ten per cent.”

Nationally, 3.5 million properties – 80 per cent – bought since 2006 are said to be “under water”.

However, many owners are reportedly unwilling to lose money on their original purchases and are setting unrealistic asking prices, resulting in them not being able to sell.

People who bought at the peak of the market, in 2007 and 2008, are the worst affected, with 93.2 per cent and 88.9 per cent respectively of homes bought during the period now worth less.

By Joe Willis joe.willis@nne.co.uk Nicholas Leeming, business development director at zoopla.co.uk, said: “There is an unprecedented number of homeowners stuck with homes they bought in recent years with the expectation that prices would continue to skyrocket.

“As a result of not wanting to take a loss on their asset, many owners have been unwilling to set realistic asking prices to sell them.”

According to the figures, London has been the most resilient, with fewer than half of homes in the capital worth less now than in 2006.