The easiest areas to sell property
New research has revealed the most in-demand areas for property in the UK as well as the least.
It’s no secret that the location of a property has an awful lot of weight for buyers.
But which areas are ticking all the right boxes at the moment? And which aren’t?
Well according to new research from online estate agent eMoov, property is most in high demand in the South London borough of Sutton, while homes located in Sefton, Merseyside are failing to set pulses racing.
The Property Hotspot Index ranked 99 of the most populated areas in England, Scotland and Wales by calculating the number of properties marketed for sale on sites like Rightmove and Zoopla verses the number sold (subject to contract or under offer) during February 2014.
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The best areas for selling a property
A total of 32 areas managed to sell at least 50% of properties listed in February. See if your area was one of them below.
|
Rank |
Town/city |
Number of properties for sale |
% of properties sold |
|
1 |
Sutton |
1,794 |
70% |
|
2 |
Hillingdon |
3,153 |
69% |
|
3 |
Hackney |
2,006 |
68% |
|
4 |
Bexley |
2,774 |
68% |
|
5 |
Haringey |
2,336 |
68% |
|
6 |
Islington |
2,283 |
67% |
|
7 |
Merton |
2,096 |
65% |
|
8 |
City of Bristol |
4,718 |
64% |
|
9 |
Lewisham |
3,011 |
64% |
|
10 |
Enfield |
1,254 |
63% |
|
11 |
Bromley |
3,462 |
62% |
|
12 |
Waltham Forest |
1,981 |
61% |
|
13 |
Croydon |
4,158 |
60% |
|
14 |
Brighton and Hove |
1,952 |
60% |
|
15 |
Greenwich |
469 |
60% |
|
16 |
Havering |
2,934 |
60% |
|
17 |
Medway |
1,622 |
59% |
|
18 |
Southwark |
2,753 |
59% |
|
19 |
Lambeth |
3,618 |
59% |
|
20 |
South Gloucestershire |
2,244 |
58% |
|
21 |
Portsmouth |
1,265 |
56% |
|
22 |
Calderdale |
2,400 |
55% |
|
23 |
Harrow |
2,440 |
55% |
|
24 |
Tower Hamlets |
3,605 |
55% |
|
25 |
Wandsworth |
3,994 |
55% |
|
26 |
Hounslow |
2,363 |
54% |
|
27 |
Swindon |
2,035 |
54% |
|
28 |
Milton Keynes |
2,198 |
54% |
|
29 |
Newham |
2,215 |
52% |
|
30 |
Redbridge |
2,975 |
52% |
|
31 |
York |
1,367 |
52% |
|
32 |
Ealing |
3,606 |
51% |
Source: eMoov
According to the research Sutton homes sold the best out of anywhere in the UK during February.
The southernmost suburb of London is located in zone five and famed for its low crime rates and rural feel. It also has a record for good school performance and local amenities.
During February there were 1,794 properties on sale in the Sutton area of which 70% sold. What's more, while it's in London, the area isn’t what estate agents call ‘prime central’ so prices are a bit more affordable. The average house price in the area during February was £276,070 according to Land Registry figures.
Following close behind Sutton was Hillingdon in Uxbridge, North London, where over 3,000 properties went on sale in February, of which 69% sold. The average price of a property in this area was around £340,000 at this time.
In third place, Hackney in London also managed to shift a lot of real estate, despite a whopping average price tag of £530,000 in February.
Unsurprisingly many of the top 20 most in-demand areas are London boroughs, though many are located in Greater London or are up and coming areas like Haringey and Hackney.
However, Bristol (8th with 64% sold), Brighton and Hove (14th with 60% sold), Medway (17th with 59% sold), South Gloucestershire (20th with 58% sold) and York (31st with 52% sold) also feature at the top of the table ahead of prime areas like Camden (38th with 45% sold) and Westminster (58th with 30% sold).
Buyer demand can centre around a lot of things but in the cases above it's easy to suggest that price had something to do with it, with property prices in Camden and Westminister averaging around £600,000 in February while prices in Bristol were nearer the £180,000 mark.
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The worst areas for selling property
The bottom half of the table doesn’t paint such a rosy picture for sellers, especially those located outside the South East and London.
Below are the 20 least in-demand areas in the UK according to eMoov.
|
Rank |
Town/city |
Number of properties for sale |
% of properties sold |
|
99 |
Sefton |
57 |
7% |
|
98 |
Bradford |
3,538 |
12% |
|
97 |
Sunderland |
1,842 |
14% |
|
96 |
Rochdale |
1,372 |
14% |
|
95 |
Stockton-On-Tees |
823 |
14% |
|
94 |
County Durham |
13,215 |
15% |
|
93 |
Highland |
1,815 |
15% |
|
92 |
Aberdeenshire |
336 |
15% |
|
91 |
Northumberland |
5,870 |
15% |
|
90 |
Bolton |
1,453 |
16% |
|
89 |
Doncaster |
3,185 |
17% |
|
88 |
Rhondda Cynon Taf |
2,369 |
17% |
|
87 |
Wakefield |
1,422 |
19% |
|
86 |
Gateshead |
787 |
20% |
|
85 |
Wirral |
1,574 |
20% |
|
84 |
Liverpool |
7,698 |
20% |
|
83 |
East Riding of Yorkshire |
4,476 |
20% |
|
82 |
South Lanarkshire |
1.434 |
21% |
|
81 |
Barnsley |
997 |
21% |
|
80 |
Swansea |
1,302 |
21% |
Source: eMoov
Property sellers in Sefton, Merseyside had a frustrating time in February.
The area, which hosts the annual Aintree Grand National, only managed to shift 7% of the 57 properties up for sale in February, which represents just 4 deals going through. Average property prices here during February was just £118,000 according to Land Registry data.
Bradford in West Yorkshire had the second worst rate for selling, but left far more sellers disappointed. Only 12% of the whopping 3,538 properties put up for sale were sold subject to contract or under offer and properties here cost even less on average at just £93,000 in February.
What are your experiences of selling a property in these areas? Do you agree with the findings? Let us know in the Comment box below.
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