We have all seen the noticeable slowdown of the property market in recent times. Confirming evidence of this was recorded in research carried out by Zoopla and property analysts Hometrack, at the end of 2017.
In contrast to several decades ago, where we saw a more buoyant property market and homes exchanging hands on average every 8.63 years, we are now seeing the UK population settling in one home, for an average of 23 years.
Home moving by geographical area
Zoopla took a snapshot of activity across Britain and it’s not surprising to find that there is quite a wide variation of activity throughout the country.
The longest time homeowners remained in one property was in Powys, Wales. On average they are reported to move on every 33.1 years. At the other end of the scale, the most frequent house movers live in Midlothian, Scotland, where properties are exchanged every 14.9 years.
London was analysed separately, showing that Tower Hamlets had the highest turnover, with homes changing hands, on average, every 16 years. The area where residents stay for the longest period in the same home is Kensington & Chelsea, where figures indicate an average of 38 years before an exchange will take place.
Why are we moving house less frequently?
The rate at which people move to a new house in the UK changes dramatically from year to year and is dependent upon several factors. This includes political and economic uncertainly, a shortage of homes for purchase as well as ongoing affordability issues.