The Property Market in Wales
House prices in Wales have been significantly lower than the UK average for many years. And despite some recent gains, the average property value in the country is set for a few more years of relative stagnation.
The Land Registry published figures in 2015 that revealed the average price of a home in Wales rose by just 0.9 percent. This took the average property price to around £119,000 – compared with an average value of a little under £500,000 in London.
However, some regions of Wales fared better than others in terms of house price growth in 2014 and 2015. In Conwy, for instance, house prices rose by 2.3 percent in August 2015, which took the average price of a town in the area to around £127,000.
The biggest house price gains were recorded in Ceredigion, however. According to The Land Registry, house prices there rose by 6.3 percent during the first eight months of 2015 – taking the average value of a home in the area to more than £160,000.
If you happen to live in Monmouthshire, you can take heart from the fact that you are living in the most expensive area of Wales for property buying – with an average house value of more than £180,000. However, if you are looking for houses for sale in Wales, you might want to head to Merthyr Tydfil in search of a bargain – where house prices actually fell by 3.4 percent in August 2015.
2015 has been a very good year for homeowners in Cardiff, where house prices have soared by 6.7 percent in just a year. According to property analyst Hometrack, property values in Cardiff were rising faster than they were in London. Such is the extent of estimated house price growth in Cardiff during the next few years, some experts are predicting that a growing number of young professionals could move out of Cardiff and live in the outlying areas – where houses are far cheaper.
Swansea has been experiencing even stronger house price growth than Cardiff has during recent months. According to a report on the Wales Online website, the average cost of a home in Swansea rose by 5.7 percent between June 2014 and June 2015. This took the average price of a house in the city from £167,000 to £176,000.
With an ever-diminishing number of houses for sale in Cardiff and Swansea, homeowners in Wales’ two largest cities can look forward to rising property values for several years to come.
