House prices rise more than five per cent in a year with people moving out of Bristol

A row of typical British terraced houses © I-Wei Huang, All Rights Reserved

The average price of a home in North Somerset has risen by more than five per cent over the past year due to a shortage of stock and professionals leaving Bristol.

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According to new Land Registry data the average price of a house in the district rose from £251,553 in 2017 to 263,383 in 2018 a 5.5 per cent increase, more than double the national average of 2.6 per cent.

Estate agents claim they have been busy despite uncertainty about Brexit’s impact, as buyers ‘still need to move’ or are prepared to weather a potential short term loss on their long-term investment.

Agents also reported hey have seen an increase in buyers from Bristol, with professionals deciding to move out of the city and get a lot more for their money, in North Somerset.

Paul Delaney, branch manager at Ocean Estate Agents in Portishead, said: “What we have noticed over the past few months is that there has been a lack of properties on the market which has meant buyers have fewer choices and has driven prices up.

“However, where some have gone up others have gone down, the flats in the marina have taken a hit but good houses have been doing well.

“We have to see what happens next month with Brexit, but at the moment we need more properties in Portishead.”

Matt Jakeman, sales manager at Cooke and Co Estate Agents, added: “I thought with Brexit on the horizon the first few months of the year would be slow, but it has been surprising how busy we have been.

“People still need to move and want to get on the property ladder,

I guess that people since it’s a long-term investment they are happy for the price to go down at first but that it will eventually go up in the long term.”

“There has been a lot of buyers coming from Bristol.

“I think a big factor in this is because despite living in the city it can still take them 30-40 minutes to get into the centre for work.

“It’s very rare for people to have their work on their doorstep now and are more than happy to commute.

“It’s so easy to get to Bristol from outside the city and as a result a lot of people are choosing to spend an hour a day travelling to work in order to save themselves £40-50,000 on a two-bed house.”