Are house prices going up in Norfolk?

In February 2022, Halifax’s price index reported that house prices had increased at their fastest annual pace since 2007 – hitting a record annual rate of 10.8pc and taking the average price across the UK to £278,123.

“The UK housing market shrugged off a slightly slower start to the year with average property prices rising by another 0.5pc in February, or £1,478 in cash terms,” said Russell Galley, managing director at Halifax, earlier this month.

“This was an eighth successive month of house price growth, as the resilience which has typified the market throughout the pandemic shows little sign of easing.

“Year-on-year prices grew by 10.8pc, the fastest pace of annual growth since June 2007, pushing the average house price up to another record high of £278,123.

“Two years on from the start of the pandemic, average property values have now risen by £38,709 (16pc) since February 2020. Over the last 12 months alone house prices have gained on average £27,215. This is the biggest one-year cash rise recorded in over 39 years of index history.”

But what’s happening locally?

According to data from the Land Registry, the average house price in Norfolk in January 2022 was £277,321, an increase of £34,351, or 14pc, compared to the same month the year before.

All but two local authorities in the county recorded a record high in January this year. North Norfolk saw prices increase by £47,221 (that’s 17pc) and Broadland by £44,762 (16pc), the fastest-growing areas of the county.

The same data shows that houses in south Norfolk are, on average, the most expensive. In January 2022, the average was recorded at £329,233. This is just under the record of £330,003, which was recorded in December last year, and between January 2021 and January 2022, this area of the county has seen prices rise by £45,864 – or 16pc.

According to the figures, the number of houses being sold has also gone up in every local authority. In June 2021 – the most recent figures to date – there were 2,386 house sales across Norfolk, which is the highest number of sales since records began in 1995.

David Hinton, sales manager at Brown&Co, says demand for property in Norfolk remains strong – despite an increase in interest rates and concerns about the cost of living.

“We understand some people may be thinking about whether they can afford to move. However, we are not seeing that yet and some people may be considering now, more than ever, to downsize as an option to balance the cost of living with quality of lifestyle,” he says.

Areas that always hold their value remain unchanged, including pretty villages in south Norfolk, the Golden Triangle in Norwich and the north Norfolk coast. But Mr Hinton believes that how people buy might shift.

David Hinton, sales manager at Brown&Co (Image: angela@angelaadamsphotography.co.uk)

“What we may see is a change in the way people buy property; in uncertain times, property auctions are a popular method as they are quick and offer transparency.

“We achieved some outstanding results in our online auction last week in terms of house prices achieved with one property in Christchurch Road in the Golden Triangle selling for £583,000, almost £100,000 over the guide price. Other properties – one in Old Catton and another in Upton Close – sold for £790,000 and £700,000 respectively, again proving the demand is still there. While ever that’s the case, we aren’t going to see a huge change in prices.”

Natalie Howlett-Clarke, joint head of residential sales at Savills in Norfolk, agrees that demand hasn’t changed. Lifestyle factors that have been popular over the past two years, including demand for large family homes close to the countryside or coast, continue to motivate buyers. But, she says, it’s exactly that demand which is affecting prices.

“There’s simply not been enough properties on the market to meet demand,” she says. “This has created fierce competition among buyers and prices have risen as a result. That’s especially true for the county’s best in class properties as well as those in some of the most desirable locations such as the north Norfolk coast or popular market towns and surrounding villages.

“The start of spring – and April and May in particular – is traditionally our busiest time of year so we’re expecting to see more properties come onto the market over the next few weeks. However looking further ahead, our researchers are predicting that the imbalance between fairly resilient levels of demand and the shortage of available stock will continue to be the overriding driver of house prices, potentially cushioning any impact of rising interest rates.

“The Bank of England has also launched its consultation on the relaxation of mortgage regulation, which could further mitigate the impact of interest rate rises in the future. However, the prospect of further rate rises over the course of the year also points to a continued stratification of the market, with activity levels remaining more robust in higher price bands where more affluent buyers have more housing equity to fall back on.”

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