More people are looking to buy than this time last year, according to property website Zoopla, with homes in the north of England typically selling an average of 12 days faster than those in the south.
Buyer demand across the UK is 4% higher than a year ago, the property website’s latest House Price Index found, with sales agreed up 5% compared to the same period in 2024.
Homes in the north of England are flying off the market faster than anywhere else. On average, properties in the North East and North West are selling within just 27 days, compared to the national average of 35 days. Property sales in the South of England are slower, taking an average of 39 days, 11% higher than the national average.
This is mainly because properties are more expensive in the South, and there are more available, which means buyers are taking longer to make decisions. In the North, properties tend to be more affordable and there are fewer homes for sale, which means they attract more interest.
House price growth remains steady
The average home in the UK is now worth around £270,000, Zoopla said, with prices up 1.3% over the past year. This is lower than the 2.1% increase recorded at the start of 2025, but higher than the 0.6% rise seen this time last year.
Affordability remains one of the biggest barriers facing buyers, and the high number of properties for sale are keeping price growth relatively slow.
Property prices are rising fastest in Northern Ireland. The cost of an average home there is up 7.4% over the past year. This is more than three times higher than the growth seen in Scotland and northern England, where prices have gone up by 2.1% and 2% respectively.
The price must be right
Getting the asking price right at the outset is key for sellers who want a speedy sale. Properties that are priced too high and later reduced take much longer to sell - sometimes more than twice as long as those priced competitively.
One in 10 homes (10%) for sale in July have had their price reduced, much higher than the 6% five-year average.
A spokesman for Zoopla said: “Homes that are priced well are attracting bids and selling in good time, though there are regional differences. In the first half of 2025, 2 in 5 homes listed went on to sell, and three quarters of these did so without needing a price reduction.”
