Flat Sales Surge in Hammersmith in 2019
Local agent welcomes return of 'sorely missed' first time buyers to W6
Merchant Terrace in Beavor Lane
2019 is shaping up to be a busy year for Hammersmith's estate agents, with the latest figures from the Land Registry showing a welcome surge in sales of flats across W6.
In the first quarter of the year, 117 flats were sold - up over a third on the previous three months.
During the final three months of 2018, there was a rush of transactions at St George's town centre development Sovereign Court. Between January and March this year however, sales slowed with just two new build apartments changing hands, along with one newly built house in Fruition Properties' development Merchant Terrace in Beavor Lane, pictured above, which sold for £1,800,000.
However, Sovereign Court and St George's riverside development Fulham Reach continue play a large part in the local property market, with a stream of properties now being sold on - including one of the lowest priced flats, a studio in Fulham's Reach's Regatta Lane, which fetched £230,544.
Among traditional properties, the good news for first timers and buyers on a budget was that the majority of flats were sold for under £500,000 and a number, including two in Shepherd's Bush Road and two more in the Peabody Estate on Fulham Palace Road, pictured below, were priced well under £400,000.
The house market was more subdued, with sales of just two semi-detached homes and 16 terraced houses - a huge fall from the previous quarter, though still up on the same period in 2018. The average price of terraced homes, however rose by 25.4% to reach £1,512,514.
The overall average property price fell by 3.8% in the first quarter of 2019 to £959,634 but again, this was due to the number of sales of relatively affordable flats.
Teresa Brewer of local agent Finlay Brewer welcomes this trend, saying: " With fierce competition for business, there are plenty of deals around to encourage first time buyers to take the plunge.
"That’s good news as they’re one of the key drivers of the market and have been sorely missed in recent years. We recently had six bids at or above the asking price on a one bedroom flat in need of a bit of love at £325,000. There are good buyers out there when the price is right."
She adds: " Despite all the politics, people are moving – life has to go on. With high employment and real wage increases, there is plenty to be optimistic about. And Spring 2019 will bring its usual upturn, no matter what is happening in Westminster."
The Nationwide’s House Price Index showed that London had the fastest pace of decline in the UK in the first quarter of 2019 with prices down by 3.8% compared with the same period in 2018 averaging £455,594. This is the steepest fall for the area since 2009 and the seventh consecutive quarter in which prices have declined. The Nationwide’s analysts say this partly reflects the level of price outperformance previously seen in the capital and the impact of policy changes on the Buy to Let market which has had a bigger effect on London because the private rental sector accounts for a larger proportion of the housing stock than elsewhere in the country.
Commenting on the figures, Robert Gardner, Nationwide's Chief Economist, said, “UK house price growth remained subdued in March, with prices just 0.7% higher than the same month last year.
“Indicators of housing market activity, such as the number of property transactions and the number of mortgages approved for house purchase, have remained broadly stable in recent months, even though survey data suggests that sentiment has softened.
“Measures of consumer confidence weakened around the turn of the year and surveyors report that new buyer enquiries have continued to decline, falling to their lowest level since 2008 in February.”
The March 2019 RICS UK Residential Survey results show little departure from the subdued picture evident across the sales market for several months now. They say forward looking indicators suggest this lack of momentum is likely to continue for a while longer, although perceptions on the twelve month outlook are a little more sanguine. However London and the South East continue to display the weakest sentiment in terms of prices.
| Hammersmith Property Prices (January - March 2019) | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Area |
Semi- |
Sales |
Terrace |
Sales |
Flat/ |
Sales |
Overall Ave |
Overall Sales |
| W6 0 | 1800000 | 1 | 1396787 | 6 | 702574 | 57 | 784804 | 64 |
| W6 7 | 1300000 | 1 | 1825000 | 1 | 552929 | 7 | 777278 | 9 |
| W6 8 | 0 | 0 | 1211750 | 4 | 557062 | 8 | 775292 | 12 |
| W6 9 | 0 | 0 | 1829500 | 5 | 1197259 | 45 | 1260483 | 50 |
| Total | 1550000 | 2 | 1512514 | 16 | 873935 | 117 | 959634 | 135 |
| Last quarter | -46.3% | -50.0% | 25.4% | -57.9% | 7.3% | 37.6% | -3.8% | 6.3% |
| Last year | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% |
| Last three years | -19.9% | -50.0% | 9.4% | -54.3% | 51.4% | 28.6% | 14.8% | 3.8% |
| Last five years | -48.9% | 0.0% | 15.3% | -40.7% | 95.6% | 51.9% | 31.9% | 26.2% |
| Last ten years | - | - | 123.4% | -23.8% | 208.6% | 550.0% | 93.8% | 246.2% |
Source: Land Registry
May 10, 2019
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