Property market activity across some parts of the UK, including London and the south-east, has slowed in recent months, but many parts of the country are seeing houses getting snapped up in a matter of days…
New data released by Rightmove has revealed that homes in Newport in Wales spend the shortest length of time on the market before being sold, sparked partly by a reduction in the number of properties on offer there over the past year by roughly a third. It now takes the average residential property in Newport just 52 days to sell, compared to 76 days this time last year, while house prices have risen by £12,000 to £175,944.
The reason behind the results has been put down to the town’s proximity to increasingly popular and more expensive Bristol, where houses tend to sell for around £300,000, as well as the fact that the Severn Bridge which connects the two places is set to have its toll fees scrapped by the end of the year.
Rightmove’s housing market analyst Miles Shipside said: “The average asking price of a property in Newport is almost half that of Bristol so you can see why buyers are making the move into Wales, especially as they know the tolls on the bridges will be scrapped at the end of the year.
“However, the demand is clearly taking its toll on the number of properties agents have available to offer buyers on Rightmove, making it very much a sellers’ market in Newport right now.”
According to local estate agents, including Mark Roberts of Roberts Estate Agents in Newport, people living in Bristol can swap their small terraced house in exchange for a four-bed detached house in Newport for the same price – and with improving transport links, this is a choice that many are increasingly opting for.
Where are the top 10?
Rightmove’s top 10 list of fastest places to sell a home included a number of areas in the north-west of England, supporting the region’s recent rise in popularity as an affordable, up-and-coming place for both owner-occupiers and buy-to-let landlords and investors.
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The second fastest place to sell in the UK is Leigh in Greater Manchester, where average properties spend 58 days on the market before a buyer is secured. Also in the top 10 is Oldham, where homes take an average of 76 days to sell – a 24% reduction compared to the same time in 2017 when it took 101 days to sell, showing how the area has grown in popularity along with the city of Manchester.
Rochdale has an average property sale time of 81 days, down from 103 days last year, while homes in Southport in Merseyside spend 79 days on the market and in Birkenhead, average properties sell after 79 days. Other fast-selling places included Scunthorpe in Lincolnshire, Wrexham in Wales, Colwyn Bay in Wales and Dewsbury in West Yorkshire.
The UK national average is now 66 days, down by 1% from 67 days in 2017, while across the country there has been a 2% increase in the number of homes available over the past year. Rightmove puts the average UK property price now at £300,001, which is a 1.5% annual rise.
