Two Tier Market in Local Property

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Houses in demand as flat prices flounder

The latest official sales figures for property in the local area suggest that a two tier market is developing in Hammersmith. Whereas house prices appear to be recovering strongly, the prices of flats are static at best.

There has been a massive recovery in volumes in the market with sales up by 83.6% over the last quarter. The sales of flats and maisonettes nearly doubled.

The average price of a property in W6 in the third quarter of this year was £513,220, a sharp bounce-back from the previous quarter and only marginally below the levels seen a year ago.

A more detailed look at the numbers shows that the headline number does not tell the full story. Flat prices are down significantly over the last year, whereas terraced house prices have risen strongly. The latter's average may have been somewhat boosted by the sale of some exceptionally high priced homes including one in Luxemburg Gardens that went for £2,100,000 but even excluding these sales the average is up strongly. Over the last five years terraced properties in W6 are up by 35.7% whereas flats have risen by just 14.1%

London's annual house price change to the end of September according to the Land Registry is -3.2%, which is the sixth month in a row in which London's rate of fall has eased. The average value of a property in London is now £314,954.

Right Move's House Price index, which is based on offered prices rather than sales prices, is showing that in October in London prices were back to an all-time high. The majority of buyers are expecting more rises and only 1 in 10 expecting falls

The Land Registry figures for England and Wales as a whole in September show an annual movement of -5.6%. This brings the average house price in England and Wales to £158,377. This is the fifth month in a row where the annual rate of decline has eased.

The latest survey of Chartered Surveyors for the RICS also shows the market recovering with London appearing to be the strongest area.

Jeremy Leaf, a spokesperson for the RICS said, " Although the supply of property is beginning to pick-up, it is still insufficient to keep pace with the increase in demand which points to further prices gains in the near term. Cheap money remains a critical prop for the market and this is being reflected in the continuing appetite for finance from first-time buyers despite the large deposits still being demanded by lenders."

The numbers below are subject to revision as is it usual that some properties are added late to the Land Registry's database.

 

Hammersmith Property Prices - July - September 2009

Area	Terraced	Sales	Flat/Mais	Sales	Total Averages	Total Sales
W6 0	778000	6	304986	16	433990	22
W6 7	1508333	9	341100	15	778812	24
W6 8	551000	10	287578	19	378413	29
W6 9	597588	17	273666	9	485461	26
Total	807428	42	303784	59	513220	101
Last quarter	42.2%	90.9%	-1.5%	96.7%	18.3%	83.6%
Last year	32.2%	82.6%	-11.5%	43.9%	-1.0%	46.4%
Last five years	35.7%	-26.3%	14.1%	-48.7%	32.0%	-42.6%

 

Source: Land Registry

 

November 18, 2009