SLOUGH'S staggering increase in house prices is "squeezing out local families" says the town's MP.

House prices in the town have defied the national average increase of 6.8 per cent, topping the league at 23 per cent since last year, according to Your Move and Reeds Rains which published the findings on Friday, June 10 .

The findings suggest the increase is as a result of the new Crossrail route running through Slough and into central London – due to start operating in late 2018 – and an increase of jobs in the town.

However, Fiona Mactaggart, MP for Slough, believes a lack of new homes has driven up prices more than any other factor.

She said: “Since 2010 the Government has built fewer homes than in any equivalent peacetime period since the 1920s.

"A housing charity reported last year that a family with one child on average earnings in Slough would have to save for 16-and-a-half-years to raise a deposit to buy an averagely priced house; these recent increases have outpaced any increase in my constituents earnings."

She added: “The infrastructure improvements to Slough, from Crossrail to the improvements to the town centre have also increased demand for housing here which is squeezing out local families."

Mohammed Asif, a partner at Anderson Estates in Windsor Road, Slough, said: “The prices have gone through the roof, it’s absolutely crazy. Now you’re looking at between £275,000 and £300,000 for a two-bed flat in Slough and around £350,000 for a three-bed house."

He added: “The increase is good for landlords who own more than two or three properties, but it’s not for the average resident.

“We’ve already got people who are struggling but the increase does seem to have levelled out now.”

Mr Asif said the next generation are currently looking at house deposits in the region of £70-80,000.

Adrian Gill, director of Your Move and Reeds Rains estate agents, believes the overall housing market is holding its breath ahead of the EU referendum, with a 0.4 per cent dip in average house prices across England and Wales since April this year as a result.

Windsor and Maidenhead meanwhile, has seen a 6.4 per cent increase in house prices in the last year – which is closer to the national average.