York has recorded the fastest growing house prices in the UK in 2022 - and city estate agents say they are ‘not surprised’.

The Halifax has today (Friday, December 30) reported that in 2022 house prices in York have grown by 23.1 per cent, or £69,648, to an average £370,639.

And since March 2020, when the coronavirus lockdowns started in the UK, average house prices in York have surged by 41.9 per cent or £109,457.

The agents cite the many delights of the historic city for fuelling the demand.

Philip Procter, Yorkshire regional director of national chartered surveyors Humberts, said there were many reasons why York is undoubtedly the country’s highest performing location.

He told the Press: “York is very attractive, the cathedral city, the surrounding countryside, the very good transport links. These simple factors all come together.”

The pandemic which fuelled working from home also made it easy for people to leave London but also to return to the capital for weekly visits to the office.

However, in 2023 he expected a period of ‘consolidation’, where the best homes and locations would do better than ‘secondary’ properties and areas.

“Good housing stock in York has a good chance of holding its own, secondary stock will fall away relative to good properties. Likewise, York because of it’s qualities will hold its own relative to secondary areas.”

Edward Hartshorne, Managing Director of Blenkin & Co estate agents in York, was also not surprised, saying the demand is there because “people just want to live in York.”

“It’s a nice place, the schools are a massive pull, both private and state,” he said, citing Fulford School, St Peter’s School and Bootham School as having a “massive pull.”

People were moving in from Leeds, Harrogate and London to send their children there, with the Yorkshire buyers finding it easier to live in York.

The rise of working from home couple with the ease to get to London was another factor, with people willing to pay over the odds for the best streets, such as Marygate and St Peter’s Grove.

Mr Hartshorne also noted a trend for B&Bs and guesthouses to be converted into fine homes.

He told the Press: “People now want to live in the middle of York. It’s now trendy to live in the middle of York.”

Kim Kinnaird, mortgages director, Halifax, confirmed 2022 was another year of rapid house price growth for much of the UK, which unlike other years was not dominated by the South East.

While London still had the highest prices, the pandemic had led to a move to bigger homes away from urban centres, giving the capital modest increases.

She said of York: “While existing homeowners will welcome the increased value of their home, such a jump makes it much more challenging for those looking to step on to the property ladder or move into the city.”

THE UK TOP 20s

Here are the cities and towns in England and Wales with the strongest annual percentage increases in house prices, according to Halifax, with the region and the average house price followed by the increase in cash and percentage terms (figures show the change in the 12 months to November 2022):

1. York, Yorkshire and the, Humber, £370,639, £69,648, 23.1 per cent

2. Woking, South East, £586,925, £93,626, 19 per cent

3. Swansea, Wales, £265,379, £39,450 17.5 per cent

4. Chelmsford, East of England, £485,770, £69,775, 16.8 per cent

5. Kettering, East Midlands, £326,895, £44,731, 15.9 per cent

6. Derby, East Midlands, £277,491, £37,953, 15.8 per cent

7. Wellingborough, East Midlands, £306,985, £41,087, 15.5 per cent

8. Peterborough, East of England, £289,994, £37,599, 14.9 per cent

=9. Bristol, South West, £394,126, £50,864, 14.8 per cent

=9. Cambridge, East of England, £531,730, £68,586, 14.8 per cent

11. Brentwood, East of England, £533,327, £66,998, 14.4 per cent

12. Bournemouth, South West, £365,148, £45,559, 14.3 per cent

13. Hove, South East, £526,201, £65,255, 14.2 per cent

14. Colchester, East of England, £377,003, £46,208, 14 per cent

15. Birmingham, West Midlands, £269,385, £32,563, 13.8 per cent

16. Milton Keynes, South East, £416,496, £49,594, 13.5 per cent

17. Newcastle-upon-Tyne, North East, £260,675, £30,157, 13.1 per cent

18. Nottingham, East Midlands, £286,696, £32,966, 13 per cent

19. Southampton, South East, £316,286, £36,151, 12.9 per cent

20. Cheltenham, South West, £406,767, £45,972, 12.7 per cent

 

And here are the towns and cities with the weakest annual growth in house prices, according to Halifax (figures show the change in the 12 months to November 2022):

 

1. Leicester, East Midlands, £271,092, minus £10,212, minus 3.6 per cent

2. Hull, Yorkshire and the Humber, £163,677, minus £4,956, minus 2.9 per cent

3. Maidenhead, South East, £549,722, minus £12,326, minus 2.2 per cent

4. Stoke-on-Trent, West Midlands, £183,928, minus £3,149, minus 1.7 per cent

5. Islington, London, £712,843, £3,059, 0.4 per cent

6. Tower Hamlets, London, £530,056, £3,582, 0.7 per cent

7. Westminster, London, £770,517, £6,510, 0.9 per cent

=8. Lambeth, London, £601,372, £8,224, 1.4 per cent

=8. Weston-Super-Mare, South West, £264,569, £3,649, 1.4 per cent

10. Hackney, London, £639,995, £10,743, 1.7 per cent

=11. Harlow, East of England, £348,180, £6,227, 1.8 per cent

=11. Warrington, North West, £282,457, £5,079, 1.8 per cent

13. Huddersfield, Yorkshire and the Humber, £253,105, £4,773, 1.9 per cent

14. Oldham, North West, £220,427, £4,309, 2.0 per cent

15. Newport (City of), Wales, £247,245, £5,645, 2.3 per cent

16. Wakefield, Yorkshire and the Humber, £243,589, £5,754, 2.4 per cent

17. Southwark, London, £620,472, £15,043, 2.5 per cent

18. Lewisham, London, £519,971, £13,558, 2.7 per cent

19. Gloucester, South West, £286,914, £7,760, 2.8 per cent

20. Camden, London, £773,263, £22,145, 2.9 per cent

 

And here are average house prices in Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland and the English regions, followed by the increase over the past year in cash and percentage terms, according to Halifax (figures show the change in the 12 months to November 2022):

– East Midlands, £292,427, £23,481, 8.7 per cent

– East of England, £421,710, £43,431, 11.5 per cent

– London, £596,667, £39,877, 7.2 per cent

– North East, £221,983, £17,776, 8.7 per cent

– Northern Ireland, £210,550, £21,560, 11.4 per cent

– North West, £268,573, £23,442, 9.6 per cent

– Scotland, £242,213, £23,814, 10.9 per cent

– South East, £477,003, £58,970, 14.1 per cent

– South West, £364,759, £39,025, 12 per cent

– Wales, £257,695, £20,669, 8.7 per cent

– West Midlands, £298,193, £26,801, 9.9 per cent

– Yorkshire and the Humber, £259,031, £21,999, 9.3 per cent