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Posted on Friday, December 31, 2021
2021 was the year of buyer demand. Across the UK, it is thought that 1 in 16 homes changed hands as buyers realised what they both wanted and needed from their homes.
The year was dubbed as the “race for space” - many people looking to upsize as the need for a home office became important and many others craved more outdoor space. The year was recorded as the busiest housing market as seen since 2006.
At JDG we like to look at the market at a local level, so you can have a better understanding of what is really happening locally. Here are your property facts.
Lancaster performed on par with most of the country with a distinct shortage of new properties coming available to the market, whilst over in Morecambe it was quite the opposite, with new listings up by 13%. This might surprise some people, however, Morecambe has struggled in years gone by, therefore many sellers in Morecambe took advantage of the fast-paced market as a chance to get moved, especially given the 28.1% growth in property prices over the past 5 years
Sales in both Lancaster and Morecambe were considerably up. Sales in Lancaster were up 24% year on year. In Morecambe, they were up by 42%. Many investors bought in Morecambe as plans for the Eden Project North slowly edged forwards. We saw people from Lancaster move to Morecambe due to the value for money. And we also had people simply wanting to live close to the sea - this was a huge trend across the UK.
March 2021 - The chancellor announced that the stamp duty holiday will be extended by 3 months for homes up to £500,000 and 6 months for homes up to £250,000
April 2021 - 95% mortgages begin to return to the market, helping first-time buyers and home movers with low equity the ability to move.
June 2021 - Solicitors across the UK race to complete property sales in the higher end market. The saving to buyers was up to £15,000.
September 2021 - Solicitors race to complete sales more sales. This time the saving is less but is still up to £2,500.
The 3 most expensive homes to sell in 2021 are as follows.
1. Barrows Lane, Heysham. A detached home which was advertised at £1.15 million. It was a large house at 5168 sq ft and had uninterrupted sea views. It had grounds of 1.5 acres.
2. Oxcliffe Road, Heysham. This was a more discreet sale. No photos were shown on Rightmove and NDA had to be signed for even details to be released. It was advertised at £1 million with the chance to live close to sports (football and boxing ) and horse racing stars
3. Bailrigg Lane, Lancaster. This 5 bed detached home was advertised at £850,000. It has 3899 sqft of living space and is close to Lancaster University.
In total there were just 19 property sales above £500,000 across Lancaster and Morecambe
In 2021 there were 2414 new instructions across Lancaster Morecambe (LA1, LA3 and LA4). In total 2144 homes went under. This equates to 88%. which again illustrates that buyer demand was high. In the year 614 properties reduced their asking price - this equates to 1 in 4 properties.
The outlook for 2022 is looking positive despite the rapid spreading of the new Omicron variant and the slight rise in mortgage rates. Demand is still high. We already have over 40 viewings booked in the diary for the first week in January. Rightmove have predicted a 5% increase in property prices. The market is predicted to be strong, just not quite as frenzied as 2021 where at one point it was said there were an average of 16 buyers per property for sale across the UK!
At JDG we are looking forward to the year ahead. As the UK’s No.1 Estate Agent ( officially named by The Property Academy and Rightmove ) we are well-positioned. We research the market heavily and share our market insights with our clients. We are the home of property data for Lancaster and Morecambe.
Whilst 88 estate agents were involved with the 2144 property sales, we are proud that 11.4% of home movers trusted our agency with their sales in 2021. We are also proud that as well as being the biggest selling agent in the area, our award has been won on the high levels of personal service we give and the exceptional marketing we offer. We’ve always said at JDG we do things differently and now we can clearly prove that the way we do things works!
If you would like to chat about moving home in 2022 or you are a landlord with a property to let, please get in touch. At JDG we are here to help.
Thanks for reading and have a great new year!
Michelle
PS. If you want to see what is selling throughout 2022, check out our Facebook page. We believe in transparency and we post the sales as they happen. The buyers are out still there. If you want to track the market, check out the Market Reports on our website which are updated on the 1st of each month.
PPS. The photo below shows the moment Miles Shipside head of Rightmove awarded us with the 2022 trophy as the BEST Overall Estate Agent for both sales and lettings in the UK. The great news for you is that you know when you work with us, you are getting the best estate agent for you and your property! Also featured in the photo is Dame Sarah Storey and Tom Dean - both highly decorated Olympic Champions.
