Regional Property Market Update Winter 2021: Thames Valley, Berkshire, Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire

Sales remain brisk as demand continues

The market is busier than in any year since 2007. In the first nine months of 2021, HMRC estimate that more than 1.2 million homes changed hands, 47% higher than the long-term UK average (2010–2019) and just 50,000 fewer than the same period in 2007. On average, there is now only 2.2 months’ worth of stock available in the UK, compared to four months’ stock in 2019 (TwentyCi).

Six areas in the Thames Valley, Berkshire, Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire have seen more than one in every 20 homes change hands over the past year. The average annual rate of housing stock turnover in the area as a whole is 4.6%.

On the up

The average price of a property has increased significantly during the past year, a number of localities experiencing double-digit annual price growth. Agents anticipate price growth will moderate over the coming months to more sustainable levels, with predicted growth of 3.0% in the South East during 2022 (Zoopla). According to Dataloft, the annual increase in the average property price in the region is £28,700.

Keeping warm 

COP26 focused attention on the environment and energy efficiency. An Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) is needed whenever a property is built, sold, or rented. While 90% of new build properties achieve the highest A or B rating, just 1 in 14 resale properties currently reach that grade, although 60% could with improvements. Upgrading could prove lucrative; resale properties rated A/B currently attract a 13% price premium (based on £psf), compared to those properties with the average D rating1.

Properties for sale in the Thames Valley, Berkshire, Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire regions of the UK

Long Crendon, Buckinghamshire, 3 bedrooms

Fourpenny Cottage is a beautiful three-bedroom home with a thatched roof and timber framed windows. The accommodation retains many character features including an Inglenook fireplace with a bread oven in the sitting room, beamed ceilings and some leaded windows. There are lovely gardens of approximately a third of an acre, mainly laid to lawn with a variety of established trees and plants, incorporating a small spinney with a tarmacadam driveway providing off-road parking for three vehicles.

Windsor, Berkshire, 2 bedrooms

This charming two-bedroom terraced period property, with the added benefit of driveway parking, is located in a prime position in the heart of Windsor's 'Golden Triangle'. The property, which is just moments away from the Long Walk and Windsor town centre with its shops, restaurants and direct rail links to London, has been refurbished throughout and is offered with no onward chain.

Thrupp, Oxfordshire, 4 bedrooms

This Grade II Listed property is a 17th century Miller's cottage, adjacent to an old water mill, converted in Victorian times into canal cottages. The property has been restored to the highest standard with many original features and incorporates modern services. Set beside open green space, the yard is gated at night and is close to the River Cherwell and the Oxford Canal, making it one of the most beautiful and authentic locations in the Oxford region.

Contact us

As property prices continue to rise and the UK hits a record number of sales for autumn, sell your property with experts in the property industry this winter. Contact your local Guild Member today.