Home-buyers will now find an increased choice of properties, although they may also notice a rise in prices
There has been a surge in the supply of homes for sale in some seaside locations, according to the property website Zoopla.
Home-buyers will now find an increased choice of properties, although they may also notice a rise in prices. Across Britain, the choice of properties has risen by around 20% compared to last year, according to Zoopla. The property website noted a particularly strong increase in supply in locations such as Cornwall; Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole in Dorset; and North Kesteven in Lincolnshire.
Zoopla added that estate agents in the South West of England typically have about two-and-a-half times as many homes for sale now as they did in spring 2022. The website suggests that the strong house price growth in some areas over the past five years may be encouraging some people to sell.
In Cornwall, property prices have risen by more than a quarter (27%) on average, while prices in Bournemouth, Poole and Christchurch have jumped by a fifth (20%), according to Zoopla. There are also indications that the increase in supply is affecting the time it takes to sell a property.
In Cornwall, it is typically taking 20 days longer on average to sell a property compared with spring 2022, and 23 days longer on average in Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole, Zoopla reported. The website also highlighted that in Wales, commuter-friendly spots like Caerphilly and the Vale of Glamorgan are seeing a surge in property listings as people look for easy access to Cardiff.
In the East Midlands, it’s the more rural settings of southern Lincolnshire and Derbyshire, including the idyllic Peak District, where the swell in housing supply is most noticeable. The pandemic initially sparked a “race for space” in the property market, with buyers eager for rural and coastal retreats.
However, with the shift back to office or hybrid working, the lure of a lifestyle move may be waning prompting Zoopla to advise sellers to price homes sensibly in the current climate. Izabella Lubowicka, senior property researcher at Zoopla, said: “Affordability continues to impact budgets. Sellers putting their homes on the market need to keep that in mind and ensure they are pricing their property realistically in order to achieve a sale.”
Echoing this sentiment, Sam Turner, director at Cornwall-based estate agent Kivells, observed: “There has been a large increase in new properties coming to the market, which is giving buyers more choice. This is also assisting the moving process for our vendors as they have more to choose from on their onward purchases.”
