The Lancaster Property Market Update - March 2023

When a market is changing, it can be confusing.   The prices on Lancaster properties that are completing now, are homes which had sales agreed in the late Summer -  hence land registery results still show a positive price growth.   We expect to see this dip slightly over the next few months, however by the end of the year, it is forecasted to be a 0% growth or we could say a nil price drop!

The big difference in the Lancaster Property Market now is choice.   The number of homes selling has only dipped marginally compared to March 2022.   However more homes are coming to the market, hence the choice available to buyers is growing - back to levels which similar to the pre-pandemic years.  

Here are your figures for March 2023

Property Prices

The average price of a home in Lancaster (LA1) now stands at £179,620.  The media is talking about how property prices may have dipped since last Summer however over the past 12 months in Lancaster, they have still risen by an average of 9.8%.

We stated last month that Land Registry is always several months behind when it comes to recording completed house prices, so please remember these prices are already outdated.   The reality is that prices have across the UK dropped by 3.1% since March 2022 (source Nationwide March 2023 Report).

I shall repeat this same message every week this year,  sensible pricing is a key! 

For those interested in the premium market,  the highest price property to sell (SSTC) so far this year is a home on Havebreaks at £850,000.    Only 11 homes above £400,000 have sold in Lancaster so far this year.

Buyer demand

Spring is here and it looks like we might be seeing a little bounce in buyer demand,  with the average number of views per property seeing green shoots of growth.   Traditionally Spring is one of the busiest times of the year for home movers so this will fill estate agents with confidence!

At JDG our own team have registed over 600 new buyers this year alone.  That’s over 200 new buyers each month!

Struggling Properties

As we head into April there are 340 homes available for sale in the Lancaster market - this is an increase of 10% from last month.  On April 1st last year, there were just 159 home.  The choice has more than doubled!

It is still a concern though that 49% of these (167)  have been for sale 12 weeks and longer.   For reference the average time it is taking to find a buyer is now 59 days across the UK - this 3 days faster than last month but still 24 days longer that it took last year!

21 different estate agents we involved with the 92 property sales in March.  At JDG, we had another great month.  As you can see on the Rightmove chart below,   25% of all sales across Lancaster are wil our company.    We have the buyers registered and with our carefully crafted launch strategy, our expert social media skills and our 360 tours, we are still achieving excellent results for our clients. 

If we can help you move,  please call us on 01524 843322 or email me at michelle@jdg.co.uk

Thanks for reading

Michelle

Ps.  If you are thinking of selling, this is quite important.   For the 2nd year in a row,  we have been ranked as the No.1 Estate Agent in the UK The Property Academy.   You do not pay to enter, every single estate agent in the UK is automatically entered.  There are 15,000 different companies entered.  

This is the highest award any estate agent in the UK can win.  It is judged on 3 key elements - marketing, service and results.  The results are the important part for you.  On average we achieve 2% more for our clients than other agents in our area.   

PPS.  The graph below shows the sales results  for all agents in Lancaster, year to date.   As you can see,  homes are selling with JDG!