…£671,706,430 to be precise.
That was the huge amount of money spent on property in Chichester in 2020, according to recently released Land Registry data. Considering the onset of the coronavirus pandemic and the amount of time we spent locked indoors, you may be surprised to hear that figure is actually up on 2019!
That is some turnaround, especially when the trajectory for the previous two years was on a downward trend.
This increase came solely from a rise in property prices, as the number of transactions fell. Do you remember when people were pulling out of purchases early on in the pandemic, as the media suggested house prices were set to crash? Well, those people missed out, as property prices in Chichester ended 2020 up by 7%, with the average price paid throughout the year sitting at a new record high (£395,964, which was an increase of 5% on the 2019 average).
One year ago, whilst still in lockdown, I made the fairly sure statement that as I analysed the figures this year, the number of transactions would be down. Whilst that is correct, I’m amazed to see the figure is only down 2% compared to the 1,737 properties sold in 2019 (1,697 properties were sold in Chichester in 2020). That does, however, continue the downward trend for property transactions in Chichester, which now stretches for six years (since 2014, when 2,376 properties changed hands).
Bearing in mind an average of 2,525 properties were sold in Chichester each year between 2000-2007, it is evident that the fallout from the credit crunch is still rumbling on. Considering the number of new homes built in Chichester since then too, it is clear that we are far below the number of transactions you would expect from a healthy property market in Chichester.
Today there are 757 properties on the market in Chichester, with 367 showing as sold (subject to contract). This time last year there were 630 properties on the market, with 195 having been sold. This suggests there is plenty of room for more positive figures next year, with the number of transactions increasing for the first time since 2014. Of course, when the stamp duty relief comes to an end later this year, the market could come to a grinding halt instead…
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