The price of prime country properties has increased across the UK for the first time in two years, research shows.

The average cost of a top country home, such as a manor house or farmhouse, rose by 2.6% during the fourth quarter of the year to average £1.4 million, according to estate agents Knight Frank.

The group said prices had been pushed up by a shortage of homes on the market, as well as growing confidence among potential buyers that prices had passed their trough.

The rise leaves the average cost of a country home only 2.6% lower than at the beginning of 2009.

The group said every region covered by its index had seen an increase in prices during the fourth quarter - the first time this has happened since the autumn of 2007.

Andrew Shirley, Knight Frank's head of rural property research, said: "The price of prime country properties is now increasing across the country as the recovery that started in London during spring 2009 continues to spread further into the regions.

"There are a number of reasons for this upturn in property prices, but the overriding factor is an imbalance between supply and demand."

He said Knight Frank had seen a 50% increase in buyers registering with the group and a 28% rise in sales during the past year.

But at the same time, the number of homes it had on its books had fallen by nearly a third, leaving an increasing number of people competing for a declining number of properties.

The group said the best properties were now attracting competitive bidding on a regular basis, and guide prices were often being exceeded, with some homes selling for close to what they would have fetched at the top of the market.