by Nisha Chopra

A Kent town has seen one of the sharpest slumps in house sales in the UK, latest figures reveal.

West Malling is in the top 10 nationally for the percentage drop in the number of homes sold in 2010-2011.

New research by LLoyds TSB shows a whopping 17.3% fewer homes were sold in the town near Maidstone compared with the previous year - that's equivalent to more than 60 properties.

In the same year there was an increase of 3.5% in prices, the report claimed.

Tower Hamlets in London had the largest percentage property fall in the country - at 22%.

But estate agent Jeanne Lindridge, from Hicks Estate in West Malling, said prices had remained stable in the area.

She disagreed with the report's price rise claim, saying you would now pay £290,000 for a typical three-bed property - down £10,000 on 2010 prices.

But she agreed fewer homes were being sold.

She said: "People are not putting their properties on the market... those who live here now may have a problem commuting or want to move closer to London but it'll cost them, so they stay put, which means a lack of available property.

"We have a station directly into London, but fares have increased considerably and journeys are longer than people expect them to be."

But she had seen a shift in the way homes were sold. She said: "You no longer achieve the asking price of the property. If the sellers want to sell than they have to accept the offer given to them.