Sutton, Cambridge and Watford are most sought-after areas while Bristol's popularity soars
- London borough of Sutton sees surge of interest from homebuyers
- All top 10 areas in demand are in South East - except Bristol at no.4
- Northern areas show biggest surges in demand compared to previous quarter
Nine out of the ten areas in the UK where demand for property was highest last month are in the South East, new research shows.
But with commuters put off by sky-high property prices in and around the capital, potential buyers are flocking further out to commuter towns like Guildford and Reading, data from online estate agent eMoov suggests.
Further north, a tale of two-halves is emerging. Eight out of 10 of the highest climbers in terms of housing demand since December were located in the North, but half of the locations where demand dropped the most in recent months were in the North East.
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Appealing: There is high demand for housing in Guildford, Surrey as commuters look outside of London for a base
Sutton has overtaken Bexley since the last eMoov study in December as the area with the greatest level of demand for properties, with the latter borough dropping down to sixth place.
Other popular locations where demand continues to outstrip supply include Cambridge, Watford, Bristol, Reading and Guildford.
Nine Elms, a district in the far north-eastern corner of Wandsworth, fared particularly poorly, with demand for property coming out at only 12 per cent last month. This makes Nine Elms 'the coldest spot in the UK', according to eMoov's findings.
Nine Elms is on course to benefit from the planned extension of the Northern Line, but homeowners who have already sold their property in the area may have jumped the gun and raised prices in anticipation of better transport links and regeneration.
The online estate agent said: 'The resulting inflation in house prices looks to be a factor influencing the low demand in the area at present'.
Sefton in Merseyside has enjoyed a surge in popularity in recent months with an 80 per cent increase in demand for properties since December last year.
Other locations where demand is increasing include Huddersfield (56 per cent), Trafford (24 per cent), Bradford (23 per cent), Stoke-on-Trent (21 per cent), Bolton (21 per cent) and Warrington (19 per cent).
In all, eighty per cent of the top 10 highest climbers in terms of demand for properties since December 2014 are located in the North, eMoov suggests.
Struggling: Nine Elms, a district in the far north-eastern corner of Wandsworth, fared particularly poorly, with demand for property coming out at only 12 per cent last month
While demand for property in the North West is increasing in certain areas, spots in the North East are faring less well, accounting for half of the top 10 'coldest spots' in terms of demand for property.
In North Tyneside, since December 2014 demand for property has fallen by 43 per cent and now stands at 13 per cent, eMoov says.
Similarly, in County Durham demand has dropped by 37 per cent since December last year.
Surprisingly, demand in the southern university town of Oxford - located about an hour away from London by train - has also decreased by 21 per cent in recent months.
Oxford's property demand downturn could, eMoov suggests, be the result of its recent accolade as the UK's most unaffordable place to buy.
Russell Quirk, of eMoov, said: 'It's almost a tale of two halves in the North alone, let alone the North and South.
'The North West seems to be flourishing as demand for housing increases almost across the board. It is however a very different picture in the North East, as it accounts for a number of the coldest spots in the March Hotspots Index.
'As we predicted last summer, commuter towns around the capital seem to be in particularly strong form. I think it will be a long, long time before we see prices in central London become affordable enough to reverse this trend, if at all.
'Nine Elms is probably the shock pick of the bunch. It just goes to show, people are trying to anticipate what the market will do and get a jump on it, rather than pricing their property to reflect the market at the time'.
Surprising: Demand for property in Oxford - located about an hour away from London by train - has decreased by 21 per cent in recent months
While demand for property across the UK continues to vary, approvals for mortgages reached a six-month high, the Bank of England said last week.
The average cost of a two-year fixed-rate mortgage for a borrower with a 25 per cent deposit fell below 2 per cent for the first time ever, the Bank’s data revealed, while five-year fixed-rates edged close to 3 per cent.
In February, 61,760 mortgages were approved, compared with an average of 60,750 over the previous six months, the Bank of England said.
The Chancellor's recent Budget also heralded a better era for would-be first time buyers, with the proposed introduction of a Help to Buy Isa.
With the Help To Buy Isa, the Government rewards savings of £200 a month with a £50 bonus. First-time buyers can also snap up a new-build home with just a 5 per cent deposit by using the Help To Buy scheme.
With this, the Government offers a 20 per cent interest-free loan for five years. This means the buyer needs to borrow only 75 per cent of the property value as a mortgage.
Source:- http://www.thisismoney.co.uk/money/mortgageshome/article-3023108/Top-ten-UK-property-hotspots-Sutton-Cambridge-Watford-sought-areas-Bristol-s-popularity-soars.html
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