New property price figures show a slow-down in Sussex's east-west divide as Brighton catches up with its more expensive neighbours.

House prices in East Sussex have continued to soar despite fears the property bubble is about to burst, a report said today.

The average price of a semi-detached family home has risen by 1.4 per cent to £110,942.

But there is a different picture in West Sussex where there has been an average fall of 3.3 per cent in the first three months of 2001. There, a similar semi-detached home sells for an average of £132,111.

The report by the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors says forces of supply and demand are pushing up prices in some parts of the country as homes are swiftly snapped up, often by people living alone, The RICS report says higher incomes, low interest rates and rising employment will continue to fuel the boom.

However, its latest figures also show a slow-down in the rate of increase.

The average family now needs a combined income of £40,000 to buy a modest three-bedroomed home in Brighton.

Worthing-based chartered surveyor Chris Spratt, spokesman for RICS South-East, said the new figures showed the market was stabilising.

He said: "The residential market had slowed down in previous months but now seems to have perked up again.

"There's clearly a certain amount of caution about external factors in the economy but there is a general underlying confidence.

"From our point of view we would like to see a stable, healthy situation where if someone chooses to sell their property there's a realistic and unfettered market."