Top of the tree house sales

The number of houses in England and Wales selling for over £1m doubled last year in comparison to 2005.

Over 7,000 properties with a price tag above £1,000,000 changed hands in 2006, according to Halifax Estate Agents. Six out of ten of these transactions took place in London.

SW3 in Chelsea proved to be the swankiest postcode with 306, million-pound-plus house sales, followed by SW7 in South Kensington with 281.

Outside the capital, the North West in particular has seen a dramatic rise in the number of sales over £1m, usually in 'des-res' villages within commuting distance of Manchester.