Could Demand be Shifting to Smaller Properties in Swansea?

Research shows that the rise in mortgage rates is pushing buyers to smaller homes and those that are selling are taking longer.

Analysis of the housing market for May 2023 by Hamptons discovered that the average home in Great Britain took 49 days to sell last month, the longest time since 2013.

As larger homes took considerably longer to sell on average, smaller homes have fared better.

Hamptons has said that last month marked the first May since 2010 when two-bed homes sold quicker than three-beds with the average two-bed going under offer within 43 days - three days faster than the average three-bed. Moreover, the average seller in England & Wales achieved 99.1% of their asking price in May, the highest share since October 2022.

One and two-bed homes have seen the smallest year-on-year falls in asking to achieved pricing, according to the research, with larger homes seeing the impact of affordability pressures.

Sellers of smaller homes are also accepting offers closer to their asking price than they were pre-Covid.
Although bidding wars are less common than last year for most homes, competition amongst buyers has increased for studio and one-bed properties, Hamptons said.

A quarter of studio and one-bed homes sold last month had three or more competing offers, 1% up compared to May 2022. Overall, the share of homes sold following a bidding war fell year-on-year, but they remain more common than pre-Covid.

As affordability is stretched, first-time buyers are buying smaller and so too are early downsizers with the aim to pay off their existing mortgage. While the larger family home market has cooled over the last year.

Speak with our team about the selection of small family homes we are offering for sale in Swansea.