Croydon top property hotspot as asking prices jump to new record high of £308,151 on average in May, says Rightmove
- Asking prices in the first-time buyer sector in the London borough have surged by 18.6 per cent on last year
- But in Llandudno, North Wales, the average asking price for a first-time buyer home fell by 7.5 per cent to £145,703.
- The price of a home with two bedrooms or fewer leapt by £11,298 over the last month alone to reach £194,224 on average in England and Wales
Asking prices for houses have jumped to a new record high of £308,151 on average in May, according to property website Rightmove, with some towns seeing ‘eye-watering’ increases.
Across England and Wales, the average price tag on a property coming to market has risen by £1,118 on last month, Rightmove said.
The price increase comes despite a three percentage point stamp duty hike for buy-to-let investors, imposed from April 1, which it was thought would take some heat out of the market.
The website said the price of an ‘entry level’ home with two bedrooms or fewer leapt by £11,298 over the last month alone to reach £194,224 on average. Homes in this bracket are typically sought after by both first-time buyers and buy-to-let investors.
Miles Shipside, Rightmove director, said that a rush of buy-to-let investors snapping up properties before the April 1 stamp duty deadline had resulted in ‘a famine of suitable property and higher prices’.
He continued: ‘Estate agents have perhaps been focused on getting investor sales through to completion before the tax hike, and some may have been surprised by the continuing momentum and scarcity of stock to meet ongoing demand.
‘The net effect is eye-watering increases in asking prices in some towns, and is further stretching first-time buyers’ affordability even though they are competing against fewer buy-to-let investors in the market.’
Rightmove said the country’s top hotspot was the London borough of Croydon, with Dartford also a popular area for people priced out of London
Asking prices in the first-time buyer sector in Croydon have surged by 18.6 per cent on last year and now average £297,770.
