Researchers compiling a list of locations suffering the largest price drops since last October have found that regeneration sites in northern city centres have been the hardest hit.

Homes in Elmwood Lane, in Leeds, have seen the fourth biggest fall in prices across England and Wales, while Millsands, in Sheffield, has seen the fifth biggest fall, according to property website mouseprice.com

Both areas consist mainly of new city centre developments: Elmwood Lane is in the Little London area of Leeds and includes the Aspect 14 development.

In October 2007, the average price of properties was £178,000 but in 12 months this has fallen to £149,000 a 16.3 per cent drop.

Millsands is a city centre street in Sheffield close to the River Don, next to Lady Bridge. Properties in the area also consist mainly of flats in new developments. Twelve months ago the average price was £142,000 but this has now fallen to £120,000 – a drop of 15. 1 per cent

Mouseprice.com's director Selwyn Lim said: "Interestingly, the greatest price falls are not connected with how expensive the relative locations are.

"Price falls have not discriminated according to how much a property cost in the first place or how desirable an area was.

"A clear theme has emerged, with the top ten areas dominated by northern city centre regeneration sites.

"These areas attracted the most buy-to-let investors during the boom and have recently suffered due to supply oustripping demand.

"These regeneration sites usually take the form of new developments built on old brownfield or industrial sites alongside canals or rivers.

"They proved popular with buy-to-let investors."

Properties around Birmingham Canal, close to the city centre and home to many young professionals, suffered the worst price fall in the past year – 17.3 per cent or an average of £32,000.

Buyers of flats in canal-side developments built as recently as 2003 have already realised their losses by selling at less than the price they originally paid, researchers said.

Properties on Manchester's fashionable Deansgate suffered a similar price slump of 17.1 per cent, while Erebus Drive, in Thamesmead, was the worst-affected area in London, with a drop of 16.9 per cent

Mouseprice.com said the average values related to the postcode area rather than the specific street or locality named. Its researchers looked at properties in England and Wales.