£936m spent on property in Chichester in 2021

That was the huge amount of money spent on property in Chichester in 2021, according to recently released Land Registry data. That is a massive 39% increase compared to 2020 (which itself had risen slightly on 2019 i.e. the year before the coronavirus pandemic began).

Interestingly, the large increase came from both a rise in property prices and an increase in the number of transactions. Whereas property prices have risen year-on-year for a while now, it is a reversal in fortunes when it comes to the number of sales, having previously seen six years of declining property transactions in Chichester.

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 really missed out, with property prices in Chichester ending 2021 up by 15% (on top of the 7% increase in 2020). The average price paid throughout the year also sits at a new record high (£416,415, which was an increase of 5% on the 2020 average).

One year ago, I estimated the number of transactions would rise in 2021, bucking the trend since 2014. Whilst I was correct, Im amazed to see the figure has jumped by a more than a third compared to the 1,697 properties sold in 2020, with 2,274 properties changing hands in Chichester in 2021. That figure is very close to the 2014 level, after which the number of transactions started to fall year-on-year (2,376 properties were sold in Chichester in 2014).

If you think were at the peak now though, perhaps think again. Consider all the new-build properties being built in the area, alongside the fact that an average of 2,525 properties were sold in Chichester each year between 2000-2007 (the last boom phase for property). It therefore seems clear to me that we are still below the number of transactions you would expect from an overly-frothy property market in Chichester that is about to burst.

Furthermore, there are currently 693 properties on the market in Chichester, with 385 showing as sold (subject to contract). This time last year there were 757 properties on the market, with 367 having been sold. This suggests there is a lack of stock on the market but with an ever-growing demandwhich typically leads to higher prices and more sales! Could the buyers of property in Chichester be set to spend over £1 billion this year for the first time?

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Written by Clive Janes, CRJ Lettings; 01243 624599, [email protected]

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