How has East Kent’s Property Market Performed between January to June 2021?

• The average house sale price grew 6% to £322,377
• 25% fewer rental properties came to the market increasing the average monthly rent by 17%
• The uncertainty of the pandemic persuaded 68% of borrowers to commit to a three year or more mortgage deal

East Kent’s property market continues to be very active over the first six months of 2021, January to June, with Miles & Barr noting that demand from buyers remained strong which increased the average house sale price by 6% to £322, 377. The region’s leading property group noted that the property market remained resilient after the original stamp duty holiday end date, 31 March, with strong results generated across the six months. 

SALES PERFORMANCE

The number of new properties to the market slowed in the first six months of 2021, but demand for homes remained high with Miles & Barr registering 7,552 people and agreeing sales on 1,723 homes across the region, an increase of 60% compared to the same period of 2020. The company was also very busy assisting people to move into their dream homes with 1,486 exchanges occurring, with the peak of activity in March at 337 exchanges, which comes as no surprise as many homebuyers were aiming to complete before the original stamp duty holiday end date. There were also 335 exchanges in June as buyers completed before the end of the first phase of the extended stamp duty holiday.

Miles & Barr also saw strong demand for intimate and larger new home developments with 179 new home units coming to market between January to June. The estate agency sold nearly two-thirds of all listings in the first six months of 2021.

East Kent’s luxury property market also saw Miles & Barr’s Exclusive division agree sales on an impressive 166 properties with the highest sale agreed topping £1,525,000. 

The company continued to see buyers looking to relocate to either the countryside or by the coast with a fifth of applicants registered coming from Greater London. With varying average house prices across East Kent, Broadstairs is noted as having the highest average house price at £417,372 while Cliftonville is the most affordable with the average house price recorded at £260,294. The average house price across Miles & Barr’s 12 East Kent towns are:

• Broadstairs - £417,372
• Whitstable - £384,077
• Folkestone - £355,841
• Canterbury - £352,474
• Herne Bay - £334,853
• Birchington - £320,458
• Deal - £315,018
• Faversham - £308,077
• Westgate on Sea - £298,982
• Ramsgate - £280,578
• Dover - £270,387
• Cliftonville - £260,294

If you are thinking of selling your home, find out it’s valuation online: https://www.milesandbarr.co.uk/property-valuation

LETTINGS PERFORMANCE

The rental market in East Kent has been highly competitive in the first six-months of 2021, with 25% fewer listings coming to the market due to a number of market-driven and pandemic related factors. The demand for rental properties therefore naturally increased the average monthly rent by 17% reaching £978 per calendar month. In the first six months of 2021, 410 lets were successfully secured for tenants across East Kent.

For Landlords, the use of online viewing technology meant that they could let their property more efficiently with 402 homes viewed virtually, since Miles & Barr launched Gavl on 1st February 2021. More than half of properties viewed virtually were immediately let, and the success of the live streaming viewing platform means it is a key tool that will stay. Since the start of the year, the UK Government’s EICR legislation came into force on 1st April 2021. This was a significant change for landlords and was one that Miles & Barr worked closely on to ensure that all managed rental properties met the new electrical standards ahead of the law change. The company also grew its property management portfolio by nearly 10% in six months, organically and through the acquisition of a Tunbridge Wells lettings company, Brettsletts. This marked Miles & Barr’s first step into the mid-Kent lettings and property management market.

If you’d like to know more about our Property Management services speak with our team: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

FINANCIAL SERVICES PERFORMANCE

The Miles & Barr Financial Services team had a record-breaking January to June with the volume of mortgages arranged increasing by 66%. Many buyers brought forward their house move, to benefit from the stamp duty holiday, with residential mortgages increasing by an incredible 74%. With demand for properties high and house prices increasing, the average amount borrowed also grew by 15% in the first six months of 2021, meaning borrowers increased their loan to value ratio to cover the higher purchase prices.

Between April and June 2021, an additional 35% of existing homeowners also opted to switch their mortgage to a let to buy to release equity from their current property to ensure they did not miss out on purchasing their new property ahead of the full stamp duty holiday ending at the end of June. The uncertainty around employment, due to the pandemic, also had an impact on the length of the mortgage term agreed to as 68% of borrowers took out a mortgage deal for three or more years, a 25% increase year on year.

Speak to a Financial Advisor today: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

*Statistics shared are Miles & Barr’s internal figures recorded between January to June 2021.