Times they are a changing? Price changes by property type
There has been much talk of changing patterns of demand for different property types. Acadata has re-analysed recent data to explore the evidence. Although flat prices have always been more volatile than other types Chart 1 shows the average price of flats has been in sharp decline since February 2020 with a trajectory quite unlike any other property type. The uptick post May has heralded a slight recovery but prices were still down by 7% whereas all other types were in positive territory.
Looking at this data on a regional basis we can contrast movements in the three months average price of detached homes and flats by region for May and June 2020. Chart 2 shows the movement in the price of detached homes and most regions showed an increase in both months.
Contrast this with Chart 3 – flats where almost without exception (the East Midlands is notably divergent in both charts). We can see that average prices have been falling although in most areas the rate has slowed in June over May. London recorded a rise of more than 10% in the 3 month average for detached homes in May (6.7% in June) while for flats there was a greater than 10% fall in both months. This certainly suggests a market reworking is underway.
