The North West is England’s Greatest Escape 

11.05.2021

A new WhatHouse? study has revealed that North West England is currently the hottest area across England for new home buyer demand (not including London) as searches for new homes grew month on month through the first three months of 2021.  An encouraging sign that, post-pandemic, home buyers still want to find their perfect new home and make a life for themselves within the region.

• Enquiries for new home properties in the North West of England increased month on month (January 1,822 to March 2,367).  This demonstrates the greatest regional increase in England outside of London.
• The government’s Help to Buy scheme in England started on 1 April 2021.  Reassuringly for the first-time buyers now able to benefit from the scheme concerns relating to the new regional value caps are not playing out, as the average price of Help to Buy new home properties coming to market in the North West is below the ceiling price set from region to region.

Regional home builders report that access to National Parks and below national average new home asking prices of £282,719 (national average is £347,908) may have contributed to the rise in North West England new home enquires as home buyers seek a green escape and more space for their budget since lockdown.

Daniel Hill, WhatHouse? Managing Director comments: “From the search behaviour experienced on Whathouse.com, the North West is demonstrating its continued popularity amongst new home buyers. The first three months of 2021 saw a total of 5,193 enquires for North West England new homes, this is a significant increase and far greater than any other region outside of London.  With such bustling urban centres plus natural resources on the doorstep it is no surprise that the North West is such a popular location for home buyers looking for their perfect new home”.

Notes to Editors:

The WhatHouse? New Homes Index is based on data sourced from the WhatHouse? New Homes audience platform.  The Index is compiled using a sample representing approx. 400,000 new home buyer searches across England, Scotland and Wales per year and its findings are reflective of WhatHouse? user experiences and geographic market share.