Latest on Yorkshire house prices and why Ryedale is in great demand

The latest data from Rightmove reveals that the average price of homes coming to market in the UK increased by 1.1 per cent this month, bringing it to an all-time national record of £323,530. Analysts at the property portal predict that the annual rate of increase will rise further before the year-end and will peak at around seven per cent.

Yorkshire has already passed that point with an annual rise of 7.4 per cent bringing the average house price to £209,970, though the region saw a slight 0.1 per cent fall in values over the past month. Yorkshire has the UK’s third highest annual house price growth with the East Midlands second with a 7.7 per cent rise and Scotland at the top of the table with 8.7 per cent.The average time to secure a buyer in the UK is now 50 days compared with 62 days a year ago. Yorkshire’s figures mirror this, while Scotland recorded the quickest time at 31 days.

For the first time ever, estate agents now have more properties marked as sold than they have as available for sale and the number of sales reported by agents also set a new record and was 70 per cent higher than the same period a year ago

Tim Bannister, Rightmove’s Director of Property Data, says: “Many buyers seem willing to pay record prices for properties that fit their changed post-lockdown needs, though agents are commenting that some owners’ price expectations are now getting too optimistic and not all properties fit the must-have template that buyers are now seeking.”

He warns that the time left to complete sales before the Stamp Duty holiday comes to an end on March 31 is “being eaten away by the calendar” and by delays in the conveyancing process, which has been overwhelmed.

He adds: “Sellers and their agents should be wary of being too optimistic on their initial asking price, as whilst activity levels continue to amaze there are some signs of momentum easing off from these unprecedented levels, though there is plenty of fuel left in the tank to drive further activity in the run-up to Christmas and into next year.”

This week also brought happy news for sellers in Ryedale, which includes the towns of Helmsley, Kirkbymoorside, Pickering and Malton and surrounding villages. Zoopla has identified Ryedale as England’s most in-demand rural area for home buyers looking for a lifestyle change. It saw the highest boost in sales agreed in a rural district with a 63 per cent rise in the past six months, compared with the same period in 2019.

Tom Watson, a director at Cundalls estate agency in Malton, is not surprised: “As someone born and raised in Ryedale, I can certainly sing its praises. It is still relatively unspoilt but has good local facilities, the people are friendly and you would struggle to find many places in the UK with such a diverse range of countryside within half an hour each way.

“From Malton you are within half an hour of the coast, North York Moors national park, the Yorkshire Wolds and Vale of York.”

He agrees that the Ryedale market is incredibly buoyant with sensibly priced properties getting unprecedented interest. “We have seen some properties have between 30 to 50 viewings in the first two weeks of marketing and we are often going to sealed bids or best and final offers. We have also seen people relocating to Ryedale on the basis they can now work from home or only commute to London, Leeds or Manchester, one or two days a week. That means broadband speeds and space for home offices are increasingly popular demands from buyers.”

Ryedale hotspots, say Cundalls, are Malton for the train connections and amenities and the Howardian Hills villages such as Terrington and Hovingham. For value for money, Tom says: “The northern Wolds villages, including Burythorpe and Leavening, are still very reasonably priced. These villages have good local pubs, lovely rolling countryside and are within five miles of Malton with quick access through to York.”

Edward Hartshorne, MD of Blenkin & Co estate agents has sold multiple Ryedale country houses to buyers from London and the Home Counties, America, Australia, and Hong Kong recently, and says: “Buyers are seeking the great outdoors, superb travel connections, excellent schooling and an unspoken sense of security and well being that is associated with this area of Yorkshire. At the tail end of the summer we recorded our first experience of New Yorkers and Londoners battling it out for a high value town house in the heart of Malton.”

He adds that demand for quality housing stock with plentiful outside space in and around the market towns of Pickering, Kirkbymoorside, and Helmsley also continues unabated and pinpoints the pretty villages of Settrington, Langton and Westow, which are seeing a significant uplift in buyer enquiries as they offer good access to York and Leeds.

Support The Yorkshire Post and become a subscriber today. Your subscription will help us to continue to bring quality news to the people of Yorkshire. In return, you'll see fewer ads on site, get free access to our app and receive exclusive members-only offers. Click here to subscribe