If ever you needed proof of the significance of timing and location when it comes to the property market, then charting the fortunes of buyers over the past 15 years is not a bad place to start.

Based on Land Registry data, just over half the people who sold in England and Wales last year had bought within that timeframe and they came away with an average profit of £73,127.  

It was those who were brave or fortunate enough to buy in 2009 during the turbulence of the financial crisis who profited the most – by an average of some £98,378. This shows the advantage of buying at the bottom but, given the obvious constraints at the time, it’s hardly surprising those lucky few represent only 2.5 per cent of 2018 sales.

By contrast, 5.6 per cent of the market bought their homes in 2014, more people than in any other year. This was a time of relatively strong house price growth set against a backdrop of low interest rates and growing confidence in the economy.

Their profit was an average £57,874, while those who had bought immediately before the credit crunch made only an average £2,653 more than that from their sale, despite holding onto their homes for longer.

Our current five-year house price forecasts look ahead to a reversal in the North-South divide, with the markets of the Midlands and the north of England predicted to outperform London and the South. But looking back, across the North, 19 per of cent of people who purchased in the last 15 years made a loss by selling in 2018 against four per cent of their southern counterparts. 

At the extreme, 70 per cent of people in London made more than £100,000 while in the North it was six per cent. And in the North East, 31 per cent lost out. In Kensington and Chelsea, the average profit was £576,187; beyond the capital, the biggest gains were made in St Albans, where there was a profit of nearly £200,000 to be had.

Of course, just how significant past profits are in terms of moving on depends on the current market at large and where and what you are planning to buy next. In property, as in life, all things are relative.

Average profits by region over five, 10 and 15 years

Further information

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