Nine British beauty spots where you can buy your dream home for 30% less than the asking price
BUYERS in nine areas around the U.K. could get their dream home for hundreds of thousands of pounds cheaper than the asking price.
New data has revealed the British beauty spots where average property sales prices are much lower than average listing prices.
House prices have surged across the UK to reach record highs in recent months with affordability still a major challenge for many buyers.
But those looking to purchase in nine postcodes can bag some major bargains, according to data from house buying company Upstix.
In Salcombe and Lincombe, Devon, buyers can shave 14.69% off the average listed price of a property.
The average price of homes there is £842,271, but the average actual sale price is £718,514 – a £123,757 difference.
In North Sunderland in the north east of England, and the county of Cumbria, buyers face paying £317,612 for a typical property, despite the average listed price being £450,995 – a 29.58% or £133,383 difference.
Meanwhile, in Ellesmere and Cockshutt in the West Midlands, the average listed price of homes is £372,531.
However, the average sales price in the same areas is £297,477 – a 20.15% or £75,054 bargain.
Unsurprisingly, buyers in London could save the most in cash terms when looking at house sales prices versus listed prices.
Properties in the capital city list for an average of £1,503,674, but sell for £1,303,664 – a more than £200,000 gap and 13.30% drop off.
The data from Upstix also reveals that buyers face vast disparities between listed prices and actual house prices across postcodes in the East of England, East Midlands and South East England.
Buyers there could bag up to 16.29% off on house prices in these spots, saving potentially £80,261.
Top areas where buyers face paying MORE than the asking price
Data from Upstix also shows the areas where buyers face paying more for a property than the listed asking price.
In Bradford, West Yorkshire, the average listed price is £44,611 but the average sale price is £56,751 – a 27.21% difference.
Properties in Portsmouth in the south east of England also come with an average sales price of £338,028 despite being listed for £296,949 – a 13.83% difference.
Homes in Middlesbrough and Cumbria have an average sales price of £75,317 despite being listed for an average of £69,021 – a 9.12% saving for anyone buying there.
Meanwhile, postcodes in the West Midlands and the East of England show an up to 5.22% difference in average listed price and average sale price.
In Wolverhampton, in the West Midlands, the average listed price of a home, according to Upstix, is £155,905 with the average sales price £164,009 – a £8,104 difference.
Further east in Radlett, Shenley and Borehamwood, average house price sales sit at £1,005,616, up from an average listed price of £955,742 – a 5.22% difference.
What is happening to house prices?
House prices are on the rise, with the latest data from HM Land Registry showing they increased by 5.4% annually in February.
This was up by around 4.8% in January and takes the average UK property price to £268,319.
HM Land Registry data is considered one of the most accurate house price indexes (HPI) because it’s based on actual sales not listings.
Meanwhile, according to Rightmove‘s HPI, house prices increased by 1.4% in the first few weeks of April, up by more than £5,000, to a record high of £377,182.
The property website said property prices remain resilient despite the stamp duty holiday ending on March 31.
Since April 1, thresholds at which buyers have to pay stamp duty have reverted to 2022 levels meaning they have to pay it from lower amounts.
Colleen Babcock, property expert at Rightmove, said: “We’ve seen our first price record in nearly a year, despite the number of homes for sale being at a decade-high.
“The increased choice seems to be bringing more movers into the market, with both buyer and seller numbers up as the market remains resilient.”
How to get the best deal on your mortgage
IF you're looking for a traditional type of mortgage, getting the best rates depends entirely on what's available at any given time.
There are several ways to land the best deal.
Usually the larger the deposit you have the lower the rate you can get.
If you’re remortgaging and your loan-to-value ratio (LTV) has changed, you’ll get access to better rates than before.
Your LTV will go down if your outstanding mortgage is lower and/or your home’s value is higher.
A change to your credit score or a better salary could also help you access better rates.
And if you’re nearing the end of a fixed deal soon it’s worth looking for new deals now.
You can lock in current deals sometimes up to six months before your current deal ends.
Leaving a fixed deal early will usually come with an early exit fee, so you want to avoid this extra cost.
But depending on the cost and how much you could save by switching versus sticking, it could be worth paying to leave the deal – but compare the costs first.
To find the best deal use a mortgage comparison tool to see what’s available.
You can also go to a mortgage broker who can compare a much larger range of deals for you.
Some will charge an extra fee but there are plenty who give advice for free and get paid only on commission from the lender.
You’ll also need to factor in fees for the mortgage, though some have no fees at all.
You can add the fee – sometimes more than £1,000 – to the cost of the mortgage, but be aware that means you’ll pay interest on it and so will cost more in the long term.
You can use a mortgage calculator to see how much you could borrow.
Remember you’ll have to pass the lender’s strict eligibility criteria too, which will include affordability checks and looking at your credit file.
You may also need to provide documents such as utility bills, proof of benefits, your last three month’s payslips, passports and bank statements.
Do you have a money problem that needs sorting? Get in touch by emailing money-sm@news.co.uk.
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