The West Midlands Property Market
Quick summary
- A mixed bag in terms of demand, growth & average house prices. Strong growth is predicted.
- Birmingham & Coventry house price increases doing well, but Wolverhampton outshining both.
- Solihull second most expensive place to buy outside London!
The West Midlands property market really is a mixed bag when it comes to demand, growth and average house prices. Although many of the regions offer some serious value for money, others are experiencing double-digit growth. However, as a whole, the West Midlands remains one of the most affordable regions of the UK for buying a house.
According to a report on the Daily Mail website, the West Midlands is set for house price growth of 16.5 percent between now and the end of the decade. The average price of a home in the region during the third quarter of 2015 was £167,185. However, according to Savills, the average price of a home in the West Midlands could be as much as £194,000 by 2020.
2015 was a great year for homeowners in Birmingham, as house prices soared for much of the year. Indeed, one report – based on statistics from property analyst Hometrack – revealed that property prices for houses for sale in Birmingham were rising at a faster rate than in Kensington and Chelsea at one stage of the year.
The average price of a house in Britain’s second city was up more than five percent in March 2015. And while this resulted in a modest average house price of just £135,000, it was great news for homeowners, who have been forced to endure decline and stagnation since 2008.
In Coventry, house prices are also well below the UK national average, although they do seem to be moving in the right direction. One report, based on figures from The Land Registry, put the average property value for houses in Coventry during 2015 at around £116,000. According to another report on the Coventry Telegraph website, house prices rose by five percent between 2014 and 2015, and a remarkable 10 percent between 2007 and 2015.
Perhaps one of the most surprising house price statistics coming out of the West Midlands pertains to Wolverhampton. According to a report on the Birmingham Post website, house prices in Wolverhampton are actually rising faster than they are in Birmingham.
Figures from The Land Registry revealed that house prices in the Black Country town rose by an impressive 8.3 percent in the year to June 2015, whereas the rate of growth in Birmingham during that same period was just 2.9 percent. Houses for sale in Wolverhampton can be picked up for an average of around £137,000.
Meanwhile, West Bromwich and Dudley also experienced relatively strong house price growth in house prices during 2015. However, the region’s top property hotspot is currently Solihull. Indeed, one report on the Birmingham Post website recently claimed that Solihull was the second most expensive place to buy a home outside London. According to the report, you will need to pay around £2,300 per square metre for residential property in the town.
Image By TUBS – CC BY-SA 3.0, Link
