House prices in North Yorkshire rise by the highest percentage since 2008

It is the highest price rise since the start of The Search Partnership House Price Index 11 years ago, which records the average price paid per square foot for property, as recorded by the Land Registry across six key areas in North Yorkshire - Thirsk, Ripon, Boroughbridge, Harrogate, Wetherby and Bedale. Compiled by property buying agents The Search Partnership, the largest increases were seen in the Bedale villages (+15.3%) and in the Wetherby villages (+11.9%), with Harrogate (3.0%) showing less dramatic changes. The last time average prices rose as much was during the recovery after the financial crash of 2008.

Toby Milbank, director of The Search Partnership, explained why a year so badly impacted by Covid-19 led to the rises. He said: “The main reason for these rises is that the housing market has a herd mentality. In any “normal” year, without Covid, demand generally outstrips supply in Yorkshire and so prices move upwards gently. Between November 2020 and March 2021, various levels of lockdown made buying houses difficult and reduced the amount of time the market was open for business.

“When the lockdown came to an end, the herd mentality was palpable, and with so much positivity and hype surrounding the marketplace, the fear of missing out meant competition for houses was rife. Estate agents’ books were full of houses marked “under offer” and buyers were desperate to secure a house before they missed their opportunity, with prices rising considerably as a result.”

Fellow director Tom Robinson added: “The end of the Stamp Duty holiday on June 30, 2021 further fuelled the flames and led to unprecedented numbers of transactions. Land Registry shows that the numbers of houses selling in North Yorkshire every month generally runs at between 500 and 1,000. Once the Covid restrictions came to an end, as did the Stamp Duty holiday, the average number of houses changing hands rose sharply to over 1,400 in June 2021.”

Looking ahead, Tom said: “With household income being put under pressure by higher living costs and with interest rate rises looking more likely, the lower end of the market may cool. However, for detached houses in the middle and upper end of the market, the number of buyers in the marketplace remains high and we expect a 4% rise in house prices across North Yorkshire in 2022.”