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Tue 07 Nov 2017
The past 20 years have seen property prices in St Neots rise at a steady and consistent rate. This is illustrated in the graph below, with the average property price paid back in 1997 being just £158,000. 10 years on, this rose by almost 30% to £203,000. Despite the slump following the financial crisis, by Summer 2012 the average property price paid in St Neots stood at £223,000 (+20%).
In the following 4 years prices in PE19 again rose by 20%, to £265,000, before breaking the £300,000 ceiling earlier this year. We do seem to have experienced a slight plateau over the last quarter – however this can in part be down to seasonal trends (approach to Christmas is generally slow).
If we then focus on the past 12 months in PE19, by dwelling type, it is clear there has been one clear pattern – the contraction in price of flats being sold. Whereas all other fields have seen continued growth (even terraced homes up by 9%), flat sale prices have dropped by a massive 23%.
We believe this may in part be due to landlords selling up, as increased legislation on the Private Rented Sector starts to bite.
On the flip side, we do expect this downward trend to reverse and the average sale price for flats, along with other dwelling types, to rise again in 2018 – just at a slower rate.
We believe St Neots is fast becoming an attractive option for homebuyers from outside the area. Property prices have risen exponentially in most areas of the Home Counties, leaving many city commuters looking further up the train line for better value for money. Likewise there is pressure from the east, with Cambridge becoming one of the UK property hotspots – again forcing potential home movers to look further afield and in turn consider our lovely market town.
With the proposed Wintringham development (2,800 homes) and the recent announcement of £5.8m inward investment funding from the Combined Authorities, St Neots is set to grow considerably over the next few years – and will continue the trend of increased inward migration. We feel it will prove to be an increasingly popular place for people to call home, and expect to see house price growth reflect this too.
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