Local House Market Back from the Dead

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Property sales recover from record lows

After grinding to a juddering halt in the early months of this year the Hammersmith property market has started to show some signs of life.

Sales are up by over 60% compared with the first quarter which saw the fewest properties sold since records began.

The relief is only relative as just over three properties a week are changing hands in the W6 post code area. With many in the industry believing the local market remains overcrowded further estate agent closures appear likely. Volumes are still 70% lower than they were five years ago when the market was booming.

Price trends are hard to measure with volumes at such low levels but overall the average price in Hammersmith is down by 10.6% over the last year. Some agents are more confident and believe that prices have been rising more recently.

"Considering the dire state of the economy we have seen an unexpected 10% bounce in house prices over the last four months," said Philip Wooller, manager of Douglas & Gordon's Hammersmith & Shepherd's Bush office. "This has been driven by an acute lack of stock, increased confidence and pent up demand from those who have been renting. Buyers are still seeing discounts brought about by the credit crunch, but the market has stabilised and it seems prices will hold for the foreseeable future."

The average property sold in Hammersmith in the most recent three months cost £433,727.

The figures for England and Wales as a whole show a modest improvement in the monthly change in house prices. The June increase of 0.1 per cent is the first time the monthly change has been positive since January 2008. The annual drop of 14 per cent took the average house price to £153,046.

London experienced the greatest monthly rise with a movement of 2 per cent, making it the region with the greatest monthly change and an average property value of £301,859.

All regions in England and Wales experienced a decrease in their average property values over the last 12 months.

The numbers below are subject to revision as is it usual that some properties are added late to the Land Registry's database.

In a forthcoming edition of the Hammersmithtoday.co.uk newsletter there will be a complete listing of recent property sales in the area. To register to receive it .

Hammersmith Property Prices - April - June 2009

Area	Semi-Det	Sales	Terraced	Sales	Flat/Mais	Sales	Total Averages	Total Sales
W6 0	705000	3	712333	6	366500	10	529158	19
W6 7	0	0	0	0	280083	12	280083	12
W6 8	0	0	477500	9	293333	3	431458	12
W6 9	0	0	560071	7	268400	5	438541	12
Total	705000	3	567818	22	308267	30	433727	55
Last quarter	-	-	-20.5%	22.2%	6.7%	87.5%	-15.6%	61.8%
Last year	-32.9%	-25.0%	-17.1%	4.8%	-14.5%	-42.3%	-10.6%	-28.6%
Last five years	-	-	16.1%	-69.9%	16.7%	-73.2%	22.9%	-70.3%

 

Source: Land Registry

August 19, 2009