The Wiltshire village of Corsham, approximately a 40-minute drive from Bristol, has topped a UK-wide list for home buying demand.
Rightmove says demand for homes in the village rose by an eye-watering 126 per cent this January compared to the same month in 2021. In addition, average asking prices have gone up by around six per cent.
The south west has seen higher house price growth than other regions in the past year or so, with prices up by over 11 per cent year on year. In Bristol, specifically, first-time buyers are now forced to spend, on average, £296,792 on their first home.
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Corsham in particular has seen demand rise due to its starring role in a number of TV dramas. Poldark, Tess of the D’Urbervilles, Lark Rise to Candleford, and The Suspicions of Mr Whicher are all filmed in the town.
David Liston, an estate agent at Strakers in Corsham, said the demand is being driven mostly by Londoners moving out of the capital amid the pandemic and more widespread working-from-home practices. “It has always been a hotspot, and that has become even more so during the pandemic,” he said.
He added that the town's proximity to Bristol and Swindon, with their employment opportunities, is a big factor in its appeal, as is its access to the Cotswolds and nearby Bath. “It is a nice little town, and there is so much going on here,” Liston said. “It is not too big and not too small; you have got everything you need.”
Location |
|
Region |
|
Increase in Demand |
|
Average Asking Price |
|
Average Asking Price Change YoY |
|
Corsham, Wiltshire |
|
South West |
|
124% |
|
£329,494 |
|
+6.3% |
|
Prestwick, Ayrshire |
|
Scotland |
|
116% |
|
£172,166 |
|
+1.3% |
|
Dumbarton, Dunbartonshire |
|
Scotland |
|
114% |
|
£138,836 |
|
+1.7% |
|
Hope Valley, Derbyshire |
|
East Midlands |
|
106% |
|
£502,302 |
|
+9.1% |
|
Todmorden, West Yorkshire |
|
Yorkshire and The Humber |
|
101% |
|
£214,137 |
|
+8.5% |
|
Cradley Heath, West Midlands |
|
West Midlands |
|
101% |
|
£182,145 |
|
+9.8% |
|
Leicester City Centre |
|
East Midlands |
|
99% |
|
£129,841 |
|
+4.4% |
|
Bolsover, Derbyshire |
|
East Midlands |
|
96% |
|
£174,769 |
|
+13.9% |
|
Kirkby, Merseyside |
|
North West |
|
94% |
|
£127,787 |
|
+11.8% |
|
Winsford, Cheshire |
|
North West |
|
91% |
|
£180,724 |
|
+11.9% |
Wages are failing to keep up with the rising cost of living, including the huge spikes in house prices in the past year or two. The latest statistics show basic pay, on average, is up 3.7 per cent year-on-year. However, once inflation is taken into account, pay is actually down by 0.8 per cent.
Analysts expect property prices to continue rising this year, albeit at a slower rate than they have done throughout the pandemic.
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