Written by Ian Frost MRICS Chartered Surveyor and
Registered Valuer
North East Property Boom: Why Homes Are Selling Faster Than Anywhere Else in the UK
I have noticed recently that many of the vendors that I speak to when carrying out surveys are surprised at how easily and quickly they have sold their home. Many make the comment that they have friends and relatives in other parts of the country who are saying that the housing market is fairly quiet, that properties either aren’t selling or are taking a while to sell.
Having surveyors located throughout the country, Watsons are able to monitor the state of the market in their different regions. A slow market certainly doesn’t seem to be the case in the North East and I think that there are a number of fairly well documented reasons for this.
Data produced by Rightmove shows that house prices in the North East rose by 0.5% over the last month, with a year on year increase of 4.6%. This is by far the largest annual increase in the UK with only the North West coming anywhere near at 3.5%, and most of the rest of the country hovering around 0 or even in negative territory. Other than Scotland, where it takes on average 31 days to achieve a sale, but you have to remember that they have the benefit of a far more organised and seller friendly legal system, the North East is also the area with the shortest period to achieve a sale at 54 days. This stretches to over 60 days for the rest of the country with Wales the slowest area at 71 days.
What are the reasons for this?
The primary reason for this disparity in house prices is the significantly lower property values in the North East. While the average house price in the North East is around £193,000, most other regions in the UK have average prices nearly £100,000 higher. In parts of the East of England and the South East, property prices soar above £400,000. Not surprisingly, London tops the list with the highest average house price, coming in at £692,000.
In the past, higher property values were often linked to regions with higher-paying jobs, with the majority of large companies being centered around the South East of England. However, the landscape has shifted since COVID-19, as many companies have embraced remote working. Now, all a home office really needs is a reliable internet connection, making physical location far less important.
This is where the North East truly shines. With excellent rail links, someone living in Newcastle can be at a meeting in London just three hours after boarding a train. I recently spoke with a client who bought a property just south of Middlesbrough, near the North Yorkshire Moors. He mentioned that he could reach his central London office faster from his new home than he could from his previous house in the southern suburbs of London.
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