The number of British properties worth at least £1m has risen sharply during the past decade, new figures show.

There are now an estimated 66,600 properties in Britain worth more than £1m, up from just 3,400 in 1995, Halifax said.

But million-pound sales still make up only a fraction of the housing market.

London's share of the million-pound market has fallen rapidly in the last ten years, according to the figures.

In 1995, nearly 80 per cent of the country's million-pound sales took place in the capital, but this had dropped to only 58 per cent last year.

Halifax said in 2005 there were 788 properties sold for more than £1m outside of London and the South East, compared with only 22 in 1995.

Martin Ellis, Halifax: "Despite the substantial increase in £1 million sales over the past decade, such sales remain a tiny part of the market, accounting for only 0.4 per cent of all sales in 2005."

Kensington & Chelsea and the City of Westminster top the £1m plus sales table by a wide margin.

Between 1995 and 2005, these two London boroughs accounted for 36 per cent of all £1m plus property sales nationally.

Outside of London, the South East and East of England, Poole in Dorset has had the highest number of sales over £1m since 1995 with 184 properties.

Midlothian in Scotland, Trafford in Greater Manchester and Macclesfield in Cheshire have also seen strong growth in the million-pound market.

There has also been a rapid increase in the number of £2m plus homes sold, the bank's research revealed.

In 2005, 566 homes worth more than £2m were sold, compared with just 40 in 1995.

Martin Ellis, chief economist at the Halifax, said: "Despite the substantial increase in £1m sales over the past decade, such sales remain a tiny part of the market, accounting for only 0.4 per cent of all sales in 2005.

"Even in London, where sales in this price bracket are far more frequent, £1 million sales represented only 2 per cent of total property sales last year."

Million-pound sales made up just 0.4 per cent of all property sales in Britain in 2005.