A report from Rightmove examining the housing market trends five years on from the Covid-19 pandemic stated that lockdown restrictions, hybrid working and a reassessment of living priorities meant that coastal and countryside properties grew in popularity during the pandemic years.
Rightmove explained that in March 2021, Cornwall took the top spot as the most searched-for area on the site – the first time it has overtaken London.
On the flip side of that housing trend, at the same time, only 47% of the potential homebuyers in London were looking to stay in the capital, a drop from 59% the year prior.
However, currently London is the most searched-for area, and 58% of people living in the city are looking to stay.
The time it takes to sell in coastal areas has also slowed, going from 52 days in 2021 to 73 days in 2025.
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This compares to London, where the average time to sell stood at 63 days in 2021 and is currently estimated at 65 days.
Looking at average asking prices in around 100 coastal areas across Great Britain, asking prices for homes near the sea increased by around 4.5% in March 2021 compared to pre-pandemic figures.
This is nearly double the yearly growth of asking prices for Great Britain of 2.7% over the same period.
Jumping ahead to 2025, average asking prices have gone up by 1% in coastal areas compared to last year, in line with wider Great Britain figures, which Rightmove attributed to competition between buyers cooling as supply increased.
First-time buyer housing trends mixed
Looking at first-time buyers, the average asking price since March 2020 for a typical first-time buyer home has risen by 17% to £227,965, while average wages have grown by 30%.
Rightmove said this suggests that first-time buyers have more borrowing power than they did, as the amount they are likely to be able to borrow has risen more than house prices.
However, there are other barriers that have made the housing market challenging for first-time buyers.
The report pointed to rents rising by 42% over the last five years, outpacing wage growth and making it more difficult to save a deposit.
The average five-year fixed rate is 4.72%, more than double the 2.15% it was five years ago.
Rightmove noted that the average monthly mortgage payment for a first-time buyer was £949, which compares to £590 five years ago. This assumes that a first-time buyer has been able to save up to a 20% deposit and is taking out a five-year deal.
Detached and semi-detached see largest house price rises
Looking at average asking prices, overall, the five-year growth has been 19%, with the largest increases being for semi-detached houses and detached houses at 23% and 21% respectively.
The smallest average asking price growth is for flats, which have grown by 7% over the same period.
Rightmove noted that keywords for homebuyers have largely stayed the same and have focused on having more space, like garages, annexes and gardens.
For tenants, the ability to have pets is still the most popular, and space, like garages and gardens, still ranks highly. However, bills included has fallen out of the top five.
Steve Pimblett, Rightmove’s chief data officer, said: “Five years on from the pandemic, many short-term trends brought about by the unique circumstances of lockdown have reversed. Coastal homes are taking longer to find buyers and price growth has stabilised as more supply has come onto the market, some likely from movers heading back to the city.
“At the same time, fewer people are looking to escape cities, as life has returned to normal, and the debate continues about remote versus office working.”
This article was first published on YourMoney.com‘s sister site, Mortgage Solutions. Read: Pandemic coastal and city housing trends have reversed five years on, Rightmove says
