Highest asking price growth in Britain in 2017 was in Sudbury

The highest asking price growth in Britain in 2017 was in Sudbury in Suffolk, homes sold fastest in Livingston in Scotland while the most searched for properties were in Bristol, new research shows.

The average asking price for a home in Sudbury increased 13.1% from £234,569 to £265,291 compared with a national annual rise of 1.2%, according to the research from property portal Rightmove. The research excludes London.

This was followed by Sowerby Bridge in West Yorkshire with a 12.5% rise from £170,398 to £191,716, then Kendal in Cumbria up 10% from £205,622 to £226,163 and Burnham-on-sea in Somerset and Todmorden in Yorkshire, both with a rise 9.9%.

According to Dan Gurney, area manager at William H Brown Estate Agents in Sudbury, the town ticks all the boxes in terms of location, standard of living, mix of attractive properties and wealth of amenities.

‘It’s a thriving market town with picturesque countryside on its doorstep so, all combined, it’s no surprise that it tops the table for price growth. Sudbury is a property hotspot for those buyers attracted to its close proximity to Cambridge and range of Georgian and Victorian properties, plus we’ve seen a wave of buyers from London,’ he explained.

In Livingston in West Lothian the average home found a buyer in just 23 days, seven days quicker than in 2016 and considerably less that the national average time to sell of 67 days, measured from when the property was first listed on Rightmove to it being marked by agents as under offer or sold subject to contract.

One reason is that the town has become popular with people working in Edinburgh which has some of the priciest properties in Scotland. Simon Thomas, of RE/MAX estate agents in Livingston pointed out that it is a 30 minute train ride from the centre of Edinburgh.

The next quickest place for homes to sell was in Edinburgh at 34 days, followed by Corby and Kettering, both in Northamptonshire, and Coventry in the West Midlands at 35 days. Falkirk in Scotland’s central belt, Glasgow and Rugby in Warwickshire came in at 36 days and Aldershot in Hampshire and Gillingham in Kent at 37 days.

Manchester has been knocked off the top spot for the most searched for place outside London this year, with Bristol making it back to number one for both buying and renting. York and Norwich rose a place each for buyer searches, while Edinburgh went up to fourth after featuring in tenth spot last year.

High employment and a strong property market make Bristol attractive, according to Sam Riddell, senior branch manager of Andrews Property Group. ‘It is the diverse culture of the city which has the most draw for people,’ he said, mentioning festivals, street art, independent shops, the shipping heritage and landmarks such as the Clifton Suspension Bridge.

Second for buyers in terms of searches was York, then Norwich, Edinburgh and Sheffield while second for rental searches was Birmingham, then Leeds, Manchester and Nottingham.

‘Although prices have grown at a muted rate of 1.2% nationally this year, there are a number of local markets where strong demand and short supply has led to pretty heady price rises, especially in areas where homes are relatively more affordable than some of their nearby cities,’ said Miles Shipside, Rightmove’s housing expert.