According to a recent study conducted by Nested, a contemporary estate agency, approximately £250 billion worth of properties have been successfully sold within the United Kingdom over the past year, with the most affluent local market located north of the Scottish border.
In order to gauge the market’s response to the recent economic uncertainties, Nested meticulously analyzed both the overall volume and collective value of property sales throughout the UK during the preceding 12 months. This comprehensive investigation aimed to identify the specific regions within the country that boast the wealthiest local property markets.
Within this period, an impressive 869,560 homes exchanged ownership, accumulating an impressive combined value of £249.7 billion.
In contrast to the preceding 12 months, there has been a notable reduction in the number of property transactions by approximately 23.5%, consequently resulting in a decline of 16.3% in the overall cumulative value. This downward trend persists despite a noteworthy 9.5% rise in house prices during the corresponding timeframe.
Areas with Lesser Property Values
Edinburgh stands out as the most valuable local property market throughout the preceding 12 months, with a remarkable completion of 11,295 sales amounting to £3.7 billion.
Following Edinburgh, Buckinghamshire emerges as the next lucrative region, with total sales reaching £3.4 billion. Wandsworth in South London comes next, where homes worth £3 billion have been successfully sold over the course of the past year.
In Yorkshire, the cumulative sales over the past 12 months have amounted to £2.5 billion, while Kensington & Chelsea (£2.5 billion), Somerset (£2.5 billion), Cornwall (£2.5 billion), Belfast (£2.4 billion), Birmingham (£2.35 billion), and Wiltshire (£2.3 billion) all secure their positions among the wealthiest property markets in the UK.
Challenging Market Conditions
On the opposite end of the spectrum, Merthyr Tydfil and Blaenau Gwent in Wales represent the least valuable regions within the UK’s mainland property market, with meager sales worth £109.5 million and £122 million respectively over the past year.
Interestingly, the City of London secures the third position in this list, where despite an average house price of £877,562, only £123.7 million worth of properties were sold in the previous year.
Alice Bullard, the Managing Director at Nested, a contemporary estate agency, commented, “Despite the waning enthusiasm in the property market following the pandemic boom, a considerable sum of nearly £250 billion has been transacted over the past 12 months. This indicates that even in the face of more challenging market conditions, buyers are still actively engaging, although at a slower pace and with slightly lower prices compared to previous months.
Naturally, the fragmented nature of the UK property market means that certain areas continue to experience swift market movement, as seen in places like Edinburgh and Buckinghamshire, where the market remains highly competitive.”
