WHEN it comes to property, prices have gone through the roof in 2002.

The Craven Herald's quarterly survey of house sales compiled from Land Registry figures show that the average price of a house in Craven rose by 32 per cent in 12 months - meaning the average house owner was £86 a day richer.

Even humble terraced houses are quickly rising beyond the reach of many local first time buyers, with West Craven the last bastion of affordable properties for those earning less than £20,000 a year.

"Since April we have only sold three or four houses for less than £60,000, and these were only just under the figure," said Tim Usherwood, manager of Dacre, Son and Hartley's Skipton branch.

"The lowest priced house was one in the Cross Hills area for £45,000 and this was a very isolated example.

"Taking Barnoldswick and Earby out of the equation, you just can't get houses round here for less than £60,000 now," said Mr Usherwood.

Neil Wright, of Neil Wright Associates with offices in Settle, Bentham and Skipton, said Bentham and Hellifield were places where cheaper homes were traditionally found, but even here prices have gone up a lot in 2002.

"In Bentham there's nothing much less than £60,000. Bentham has had a very good year. The cheapest in Hellifield is now about £65,000.

"Settle is really booming. A lot of property has exceeded the asking price and gone to sealed bids where we ask those in the running for their final and best offers," said Mr Wright.

It does seem that within Craven the old adage "location, location, location" is holding true. Dacre's are currently offering 42 Shuttleworth Street, Earby, for £37,500 but its value would more than double if it was situated just five and a half miles away in Gargrave.

"This is by far the cheapest house available with us at the moment. It is a tidy, two-bedroomed terrace and would probably be worth £70,000 to £80,000 if it was in Skipton, and more than £100,000 if it was in Gargrave,

"Once you have driven through Thornton-in-Craven it is like falling off a precipice," said Mr Usherwood.

Typically a two bedroomed terrace in Skipton is around the £80,000 mark and to afford this a lone purchaser putting down a five per cent deposit would need to be earning more than £20,000.

The Silsden area has caught up with Skipton over the last 12 months as this part of South Craven has seen the biggest uplift in values across the area.

The market generally is still surging ahead with no lull in sight.

"It is still extremely demand led. We had a new instruction in Embsay published in the Craven Herald in November and by 10am that Friday we had appointments for nine viewings," said Mr Usherwood.

Interestingly, the numbers of buyers from outside the area has increased dramatically in recent months.

Many sales in the Dales beyond a line drawn from Gargrave to Grassington have been to "offcumdens" - whereas many of the buyers Skipton side of the line have been from within the area.

Mr Usherwood said: "There's a lot of people who are moving to work in Leeds or Bradford who can't afford Harrogate or Ilkley but can afford Skipton and they can get into work just as easily. They realise that what Skipton lacks in Georgian finery it more than makes up for in Yorkshire Dales charm."

Mr Wright said: "A lot of people are coming from West Yorkshire and the South. They come to escape the larger towns, get their children in our schools and are prepared to travel to work. Others sell big houses elsewhere in the country, buy something cheaper round here and live on the equity."

Many incomers are older people who are recently retired and active.

A reflection of this trend is the high demand for bungalows.

"Pound for pound, square foot for square foot, bungalows are the most expensive properties by far outside Grassington and the rural area beyond, because of their scarcity," Mr Usherwood explained.

Barns to convert are also in demand as are properties which people can do up, almost certainly inspired by the rash of DIY programmes on television.

Building land has also increased in value which has the obvious knock-on effect of pushing up the cost of the finished properties.

The late summer and autumn brought Craven's first million pound private homes on to the market - Hanlith Hall in Malhamdale commanding pole position with its £1.5 million price tag, and offers in excess of £1 million invited for Merlinwood at Thornton-in-Craven.

Hanlith Hall, offered with Dacre's, was the seat of the Serjeantson family from the 14th century until early last century.

Your £1.5million will buy you the 17th century eight bedroomed hall with indoor swimming pool and ballroom, woodland, riverside parkland, shooting rights over 2,000 acres and fishing on 1.4 miles of the River Aire. All this in an unrivalled setting in picturesque Malhamdale.

And this is a bargain when you look at the national picture - a similar property in the Home Counties would no doubt cost at least double.

"For the quality and setting it is absolutely second to none. I would have thought that almost anywhere else you would pay a considerably higher sum for it," said Mr Usherwood.

Merlinwood is a Georgian house in mature landscaped gardens with six bedrooms, basement leisure suite plus a two-bedroomed cottage, garaging, stable and workshop. It is for sale through Strutt and Parker's Harrogate office.

By contrast, probably the cheapest property on the market in Craven at the moment is a one bedroomed second floor flat in Ingleton offered by Neil Wright Associates for £36,000.