Wetherby: Town where Kiefer Sutherland filmed scenes for new Christmas film sees spike for family homes
Just when you thought the Christmas season had ended, Kiefer Sutherland and a film crew brought some festive cheer to Wetherby last month, filming the new Sky Original Christmas movie, Tinsel Town.
The film – which is set to air this Christmas – will also feature the Emmy Award-winning actor and actress, writer and producer Rebel Wilson and Danny Dyer.
Filming has been taking place across the North of England in recent weeks and the cast and crew spent two days in Wetherby after decorating the market square for the festive season.
Wetherby’s use as a filming location provides an opportunity to showcase the town, including the beautiful Grade II listed Town Hall, which is featured in some of the scenes.
Its prime position in the rarefied Golden Triangle and frequent listing as one of the best places to live in the north already makes Wetherby a Yorkshire property hotspot.
The average house price in Wetherby over the last year was £403,913, according to property website Rightmove.
The majority of properties sold in the town during the last year were detached homes, selling for an average price of £562,578. Semi-detached properties sold for an average of £318,186, with terraced properties fetching £254,548.
According to Paul Baxter, area director for Dacre, Son & Hartley, current demand is outstripping supply in some areas of the market.
“At the moment there is very strong demand for larger three and four bedroom family homes between £450,000 and £600,000,” he says.
“It’s an absolute hotspot where there are far more people looking for properties in that price sector than there are people wanting to sell them.”
A recent three bedroom detached house in a desirable part of Wetherby that Dacres put on the market attracted about 15 viewings in its first week. “But that’s not happening in every price sector, far from it,” says Paul. “There are hotspots in certain areas.”
Housing developments on Deighton Road, Spofforth Hill areas are particularly popular, he says, but there is a need for more homes in the town.
He adds that the majority of buyers are local, which is snarling up the market. “Some people are calling off the sale of their own properties and staying put because they can’t find anywhere to buy,” he says.
The situation is also affecting affordability, with sought-after family homes selling for up to £25,000 above the asking price, while properties elsewhere in the chain remain at their original price.
“It’s almost like you’ve got to pay an extra £25,000 on a £500,000 house to be the lucky buyer,” says Paul. “It won’t last forever, though and the embarrassing thing is we’ve got perfectly good houses in other price sectors and styles that aren’t getting a look-in at the moment. It’s really polarised.”
The situation, he says, is an indirect result of the changes to stamp duty. Currently, homebuyers don’t pay stamp duty on properties below £250,000, but this will drop to the previous level of £125,000 at the start of April. The threshold requiring first-time buyers to pay stamp duty will also fall from £425,000 to £300,000.
“There was a mad dash to buy before the deadline so those people mopped up the available houses on the market.
“However, people didn’t put any more houses up for sale in November, December and January so there was no supply but a huge amount of demand,” says Paul.
He adds: “From April I expect a return to normality and a more sensible market where there will be more of an equilibrium of sellers and buyers.
“It’s a short-term blip in the market because alongside it, there are no new homes to satisfy the demand.”
Wetherby may not have a train station but apart from the lack of rail links, it offers just about everything a discerning buyer could want. There is an attractive town centre, waterside walks, two good primary schools, a top racecourse, golf and tennis clubs, a leisure centre and the A1 on the doorstep.
It is also near a number of desirable villages including Linton, Collingham, Boston Spa and Kirk Deighton.
According to Laura Walker, sales director at Butler Ridge estate agent in Wetherby, inset, there is activity at all levels of the market, albeit slightly slower at the top end.
Families are attracted to the schools and downsizers from nearby villages are looking for houses close to amenities.
“Families are looking for a good primary school where they can walk their children to school,” she says. “We also find quite a few semi-retired clients looking at Wetherby. “They tend to come from nearby villages and they like it here because of the amenities. There’s everything you need so you don’t really have to leave.”
Andrew Beadnall, director of Beadnall Copley, says: “We are very lucky that whatever happens in the marketplace we are resilient.
“You’ve got amazing access to the A1, the M1 and M62 for people who are working in Leeds. On top of that there are some cracking schools in the state and private sector.”
He adds: “The market is picking up. Now the daffodils are coming out and the evenings are lighter, people are starting to house hunt again.”