The impact of Brexit uncertainty and the slowing economy on property sales has led to some strange data emerging on the country’s hottest purchase spots, and a recent report from Springbok Properties last week added to the trend.
Using data from Rightmove, Zoopla, Prime Location and OntheMarket, the estate agency reported that the city with the highest levels of buyer demand in the first quarter was Scotland’s Falkirk, witnessing a buyer demand score of 64%.
The report calculated the most and least popular of 200 British cities based on the total ratio of stock listed for sale, and homes which had gone under offer or been sold subject to contract. If 100 properties in a city are listed, for example, but 60 have already sold subject to contract or are under offer, this town would score a demand percentage of 60%.
Popularity contest
Scotland was represented well on the list with Glasgow and Edinburgh locking out three of the top four places on the list. In fact, on a UK basis, buyer demand in cities in the Midlands and further north was much stronger than in the traditionally-popular areas in London and the South East. Only Dartford in Kent registered on the most-popular list.
Commenting on the data, Springbok Properties founder Shepherd Ncube noted: “With Brexit uncertainty taking hold on a national level, it’s interesting to see some of the less conventional areas coming to the forefront where buyer demand is concerned and these areas are certainly benefiting from a more business-as-usual attitude where home selling is concerned.”
|
The UK’s most popular cities |
|
|
City |
Current demand |
|
Falkirk |
64% |
|
Glasgow |
58% |
|
Sale, Greater Manchester |
57% |
|
Edinburgh |
56% |
|
Dartford, Kent |
53% |
|
Dudley, West Midlands |
53% |
|
Bristol |
52% |
|
Walsall, West Midlands |
51% |
|
Sheffield, South Yorkshire |
51% |
|
Coventry, West Midlands |
49% |
London languishes
Springbok’s data did show that things aren’t all bright north of the border, though. Aberdeen clinched the title of UK city with the lowest levels of homebuyer demand, with a reading of just 10%.
What the data also showed was that market activity in London remains pretty subdued, the capital city sitting in sixth position on the list of least popular metropolitan areas.
|
The UK’s least popular cities |
|
|
City |
Current demand |
|
Aberdeen |
10% |
|
Stockton-on-Tees, County Durham |
26% |
|
Sunderland, Tyne and Wear |
26% |
|
Middlesbrough, North Yorkshire |
26% |
|
Darlington, County Durham |
26% |
|
London |
27% |
|
Preston, Lancashire |
27% |
|
Blackpool, Lancashire |
27% |
|
High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire |
29% |
|
Newcastle-upon-Tyne, Tyne and Wear |
30% |
Discussing the London market more specifically, NCube said: “The more affordable, peripheral boroughs remain in good favour with London home buyers but prime central London in particular continues to pay the price of over inflated prices driven by previous market conditions.”
|
Homebuyer demand in London |
|
|
Borough |
Current demand |
|
Bexley |
51% |
|
Barking and Dagenham |
46% |
|
Waltham Forest |
45% |
|
Lewisham |
43% |
|
Havering |
41% |
|
Bromley |
41% |
|
Sutton |
40% |
|
Hillingdon |
38% |
|
Haringey |
38% |
|
Greenwich |
38% |
|
Kingston upon Thames |
35% |
|
Enfield |
35% |
|
Merton |
34% |
|
Croydon |
34% |
|
Redbridge |
33% |
|
Harrow |
32% |
|
Hounslow |
30% |
|
Southwark |
29% |
|
Islington |
29% |
|
Lambeth |
29% |
|
Hackney |
28% |
|
Wandsworth |
27% |
|
Richmond upon Thames |
26% |
|
Newham |
26% |
|
Ealing |
26% |
|
Barnet |
23% |
|
Hammersmith and Fulham |
22% |
|
Brent |
19% |
|
Tower Hamlets |
19% |
|
City of London |
18% |
|
Camden |
17% |
|
Kensington and Chelsea |
13% |
|
Westminster |
12% |
What now for buy-to-let investors?
This data gives buy-to-let investors plenty of food for thought. But it doesn’t mean that you should rush out and buy a place in either the UK or London’s demand hotspots, though. The mounting costs and increased regulatory loopholes associated with renting out a property makes it a much-less attractive proposition than investing in the stock market, I believe. And there’s no shortage of great stocks out there to help you make a fortune. It’s why I, for one, shunned the role of landlord for that of shareholder instead…
