From our lockdown survey of buyer and seller sentiment we know that country living has captured the imagination.
A third of respondents from London said they found this idea of a village location more attractive than they did before coronavirus restrictions came into force, rising to 42 per cent of respondents from the regions, for example.
Without doubt, Covid-19 has caused many of us to take a fresh look at our priorities, including where we want to live. And for those whose job no longer requires working exclusively from the office, that means opening up new possibilities for a move less closely tied to the practicality of a daily commute.
However, that’s not to imply a wholesale exodus from urban areas to the countryside.
Towns and cities continue to provide many with the ambiance and amenities they thrive on. Rather than turn their back on this lifestyle altogether, there are signs that some are now looking for the best of both worlds. Areas which offer easy access to local shops or markets and retain a community feel – already highly sought after pre-lockdown in many cases – could see increased demand from those in search of some of the qualities of village life without leaving the cities they love.
But a property in these ‘urban villages’ comes at a price. Hampstead, for example, has an average value of £1,920,255, a premium of 208 per cent over London as a whole, and it’s a similar picture in Wimbledon where, with an average sale price of £1,843,130, the premium is close to 196 per cent.
Edgbaston commands a premium of more than 100 per cent compared to Birmingham overall (£400,701 vs £197,078), while Bathwick’s premium is 82 per cent above the average for Bath (£862,027 vs £473,303), and in Newtown and St Leonard's, average values are 27 per cent higher than the average Exeter house price (£343,659 as opposed to £270,394).
As our table below shows, values are often at least double the overall average of the cities themselves.
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