Asking prices for homes in Islington fell in December 2016, dropping 6.7 per cent to an average of £801,593.

House prices in London as a whole remained more or less stagnant, dropping 0.1 per cent year on year, in line with typical seasonal price drops for December, with some of the cheaper outer boroughs recording strong annual growth. In contrast, inner London has seen softening transaction numbers since spring.

Land Registry figures show the number of homes sold in Islington has dropped by about a third compared with the start of the year.

In August – the most recent month for which data are available – only 122 sales went through here. Before a sales spike in March due to tax changes for investors, there were 180 sales a month on average.

Brexit jitters could be partly to blame for the failing London property market but the biggest hurdle for buyers in such high value areas as Barnsbury and Canonbury, and in new builds near Old Street, has been the hike in Stamp Duty for property costing more than £936,000.

Islington sellers seem to have been deterred by the slowdown, with the number of new sales properties in the borough dropping 35.4pc – the biggest slump in the country – according to property portal Housesimple.com.

Rightmove forecast property prices in inner London would fall 5pc in 2017 and said demand from buyers looking for homes in the capital had dropped 7pc. Director Miles Shipside said: “Demand for mass-market housing remains undimmed, though buyers’ budgets are restricted and agents report overpriced property is being shunned.

“Cheap and available mortgage money is a big factor in driving demand, and continuing market buoyancy next year will depend on banks remaining willing and able to lend.”