Buyers continue to be drawn in by East Anglia’s booming economy and its transport links to London according to housing chiefs – despite 2017 recording the slowest national house price rise in five years.
Demand is continuing to climb, estate agents in Suffolk and north Essex have said as an index revealed prices in East Anglia grew by 2.3% last year to an average of £223,613.
In north Essex, prices went up by 3.1% to an average £277,030 according to the Nationwide Building Society – and for the first time in a decade, prices grew at a faster rate in northern England than in the south.
Fenn Wright partner Charlie Wright said demand continued to overtake supply last year.
He added: “I wouldn’t say that people are running out of London to live in Suffolk and parts of north east Essex but I would say the city and our connection to it with the train line is still a big draw for people buying here.
“East Anglia itself has a fantastic booming economy and there are plenty of people settling here and working here, so demand is going up.
“I also think on a more national level that the country is getting bored of Brexit.
“At the beginning of last year everyone was using Brexit as an excuse and perhaps that is why prices did not go up as fast as everyone expected.
“Now people are accepting it more, maybe we will have a more positive picture for 2018.”
Peter Ogilvie, residential director at Savills, said the appeal of towns and villages across both counties is better than ever.
“I think the 2.3% figure is slightly meaningless in Suffolk and north Essex because price bands inevitably differ according to location,” he said.
“We believe our area is in a positive position looking forward to 2018 because demand has certainly gone up.
“We’re lucky here because the appeal of towns and villages in Suffolk and north Essex is better than ever.
“They have great access to London and good schools.
He added: “We have seen demand increase steadily over the year, particularly along our heritage coast line – there is strong interest and noticeable growth in second home buyers purchasing homes, often from London and some from abroad.”
In London, prices were down 0.5% annually.
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