The UK’s house price hotspot is revealed

According to Rightmove, average asking prices for homes were 5.6% higher across Great Britain at the end of 2022 than they were at the same time in 2021 – but one area did exceptionally well.

In a list dominated by towns in the South East, it was a small town in Nottinghamshire that picked up the honours.

The figures show that Eastwood saw its average asking price for homes in the area rise by 29%.

Rightmove says that last year, the average price for a home there was £231,381, compared to £179,194 in 2021.

‘Property prices have risen exceptionally’

Tim Bannister, Rightmove’s property expert said: “Property prices have risen exceptionally over the last three years.

“If we compare with December 2019, just before the pandemic started, the average asking price of a home in Great Britain has risen by a staggering 20%.

“To put that into context, asking prices rose just 3% in the previous three years, and we need to go all the way back to 2013 to see similar price growth.”

He added: “We expect average asking prices to drop by 2% next year now that the frenetic period for the market is over, and it is likely that some sellers, particularly those in locations and sectors of the market that have benefitted the most from pandemic price growth, may be willing to give up some of their gains in this calmer market in order to negotiate a successful sale.”

Predictions for the housing market

Rightmove is also offering its predictions for the housing market in 2023.

Along with price falls of 2%, it is predicting that buyer affordability will be stretched but sellers may not be in a rush to drop prices if they don’t see much competition from other sellers.

The platform is also not anticipating an oversupply of properties through forced sales that could lead to major price falls.

There will also be a ‘period of readjustment’ for both buyers and sellers at the start of the year as the market settles down.

List of best performing house prices

In Rightmove’s list of best performing house prices, Hulme in Greater Manchester is in second place with a 26% price rise, and Sandbanks in Poole, Dorset, is third where asking prices rose by 22%.

Homeowners in Wales saw the biggest growth in average asking prices at +27% during this period, while London has seen the lowest with +11%.

The firm says that even with region and sector variations, those who acted quickly in the early stages of the pandemic will be feeling the full benefit of the rise in home values.

It adds that for those who made a big life move to the coast or countryside, they may be hoping there is no return to the days of commuting to a city office five days a week.

Rightmove’s average asking price hotspots:

• Eastwood, Nottingham, +29%
• Hulme, Greater Manchester, +26%
• Sandbanks, Dorset, +22%
• Heathfield, East Sussex, +21%
• Chelston, Devon, +20%
• St. Peters, Kent, +20%
• Cowes, Isle of Wight, +20%
• Little Lever, Manchester, +20%
• Birchington, Kent, +19%
• Deeping St. James, Cambridgeshire, +19%

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