As a property investor it would be great to predict where the best areas for returns in 2018 will be, but how did 2017 fare for property investment?

There's no doubt there were winners and losers over the year - depending on where investors ploughed their money.

A new survey from Halifax reveals that the best town in the UK to deliver house price growth was in Cheltenham, Gloucestershire.

Their figures reveal that the average price of a property there rose by 13% compared to 2016.

That's nearly five times the UK's average of 2.7%.

The list contains, as you would expect, a number of surprises with Bournemouth taking second spot in the list of rocketing property prices with values there growing by 11.7%.

There must have been something in the seaside air in 2017, as Brighton is in third place with property price rises of 11.4% over the year.

However, of the 20 top house price performances, 15 of them are in London and the south of England.

They include Crawley with 10.4%, Newham on 10.2%, Peterborough saw prices rise by 10.1% and Gloucester had prices rise by 9.5%. Prices also rose in Exeter by 9.1%.

The top property performing towns and cities outside of London and the south that made the top 20 in 2017 include Huddersfield where prices rose by 9.3%, Nottingham with a 8.9% and Lincoln where prices rose by 8.4%.

Property prices also rose in Stockport by 8.2% and by 7.7% in Swansea.

The analysis from Halifax reveal that in the London borough of Richmond-upon-Thames and Barnet, the average house price has grown in cash terms by more than £40,000 since 2016.

That's a great return for property investors who spotted the trend two or three years ago.

As ever with property investment, the highs and lows are not in evidence in every town or city and Halifax says that many areas saw house prices decline last year.

The largest fall in property prices in 2017 was for investors in Perth where they dropped by 5.3%.

Other towns and cities that performed badly last year include Stoke-on-Trent, Paisley, Wakefield and Rotherham as well as Dunfermline. The facts and figures aren't too kind to investors in Barnsley or Aberdeen either with Bromley also showing a price fall.

Russell Galley, Halifax’s managing director, said: “A number of cities and towns have seen significant house price rises over the year and all top 20 performers recorded growth that was at least double the UK's average.

“Unlike the year before, these top performers are not just exclusive to the south east and London with the top spot belonging to Cheltenham as towns in East Anglia, North Wales, East Midlands and Yorkshire also made the list.”

He added: “Most towns where house prices fell are located in Yorkshire and Scotland where, generally speaking, property prices are constrained by relatively weaker economic conditions and lower employment levels.”

However, the big point to take away from 2017’s list of winners and losers for property investment is the fact that London's property market did not see prices soar.

While prices have rocketed in recent years, the capital was the worst performing region in the UK, the first time that's happened since 2005.

While some may remain sceptical about the prospects for the UK's property market, the market itself remained fairly stable last year.

Since March, house price rises have been within the 2% to 4% range, according to Nationwide, with prices nationally rising by an average of 2.3% since January. The average cost of a home is now £209,988.

Property investors need to be aware of other facts and figures and the Land Registry offers a good indicator of where the winners and losers of 2017 are based.

According to the Land Registry, the UK recorded a 5.1% rise in property prices in 2017. That's a good return that any property investor will appreciate.

The figures also highlight the issues with London's property market which still remains sluggish. The average property in the capital rose by £4,000 on average last year.

The figures highlight that the lowest annual growth was seen in London at 2.3% while the West Midlands offered the highest growth with 7.2%.

Essentially, in the 12 months to November, house prices in the UK rose on average by £11,000 and between October and November they rose by 0.1%.

Looking forward, it appears that property market experts are predicting a muted market so for those investors wanting excellent levels of capital growth, then you may be disappointed.

For example, capital economics is forecasting a 2% price rise for house this year while real estate firm JLL says the average UK property price rise in 2018 will be just 1%.

When it comes to understanding how the property market in 2018 will perform, then understanding why the winners and losers in 2017 list made the investment list may prove instructive to avoiding any potential and expensive mistakes.