Average House Prices Continue to Increase in Dorset
By Grant Brooks – MD Edwards Estate Agents
With warmer, if not slightly damp weather, and longer days, heralding the early signs of spring across Dorset. The traditionally strong springtime market has had an early start in 2024, with significantly more homes coming to the market and increasing buyer demand.
The upturn in market activity is largely a result of continued positive signs from the economy, with falling inflation, interest rates stable, and perhaps most relevant, the availability of more competitive mortgage rates. Thankfully, confidence is steadily returning to the Dorset property market.
It’s also interesting to see local homeowners who have previously been apprehensive of marketing their property due to higher mortgage interest and economic uncertainty are now being tempted back to the market as normality returns.
Buyer activity has also seen a significant increase in March as property stock levels increase, as well as the availability of more affordable mortgages and continued high rental prices, all seem to be driving buyer demand.
Average House Prices Increase
The property portal Rightmove, which promotes the property stock of most estate agents in the UK, produce a monthly ‘House Price Index’, the index is the property industry’s guide to the performance of the property market across the whole of the UK. There will of course be regional variations, but from a Big Data perspective, it provides an overview of how the property market is behaving.
The March index, published a few days ago makes interesting reading, here are the key metrics and observations –
Asking prices –
The index confirms that average asking prices have increased at their highest rate for 10 months during March, showing the average price of property coming to the market for sale rose by 1.5% or £5,279 in the month to £368,118.
The figure is higher than the historic average March increase of 1.0% and is up 0.8% annually. Whilst average asking prices are still £4,776 below the May 2023 peak.
Sales agreed –
Rightmove’s analysis shows that the number of sales being agreed is 13% higher than at this time last year, while buyer demand is 8% above last year, led by the less mortgage-rate-sensitive larger homes sector and London. Agreed sales in the less mortgage-rate-sensitive top-of-the-ladder sector are now 18% higher than last year.
It also confirms that it is this largest homes sector which is driving more people to get in touch with estate agents than at this time last year. In March so far, buyer demand for top-of-the-ladder properties is 12% higher than the same period last year, compared with 8% higher overall for all property types.
The Local Dorset Market
The local Dorset market in March has again seen significant numbers of both buyers and sellers coming to the market and with a continued positive media consistently talking up house prices and improved mortgage deals, buyers and sellers have reason to feel optimistic as confidence returns to the local property market.
Some of the fantastic properties listed for sale in Dorset this month
Here are just a few of the properties listed for sale from across Dorset in March 2024 –
House for sale in Poole, Dorset – Guide Price £1,500,000
New Home for sale in Ferndown – Guide Price £1,200,000
House Sold in Blandford Forum – OIRO £800,000
Bungalow for sale in Dorset – Guide Price £475,000
House for sale in Wimborne – Guide Price £465,000
House To Let in Dorset – £2,900 pcm
House Let Agreed in Verwood – £1,500 pcm
House To let in Wimborne – £1,900 pcm
To see the very latest homes to come to the market, click ‘New to market homes’, this lists all of our very latest properties for sale.
Or see more ‘Recently Sold Properties’.
Ready for a spring move?
If you would like some help or advice, please feel free to give me a call at our Ferndown Office anytime.
You can use our Instant Online Valuation or book a Face to Face Valuation.
Until next month, happy house hunting.
Grant Brooks – Edwards Estate Agents
See what our customers say about us, read our customer reviews.
