Homes are changing hands faster than in other areas of the country
The Bromsgrove district, which includes Belbroughton, Clent, Hagley and Romsley, is one of the areas of the country where homes are currently fastest to sell.
Research by estate agent comparison site GetAgent.co.uk found that so far this year, the time it takes to sell a property has increased by 14 per cent when compared to last year.
The average time is 144 days from listing to completing, compared to 127 days in 2019.
For Bromsgrove it is 104 – the 19th best in the UK – and Edinburgh, where homes sell fastest in the UK, it is 78.
GetAgent.co.uk tracks transactions across the UK from the point they are listed for sale online to the point they are recorded as completed with the Land Registry, giving them an extensive record of the time it takes to sell.
The slowest pocket of the market is currently the City of London at 271 days. Powys is also a slow selling area – 13th from the bottom nationally – at 204 days.
Founder and chief executive of GetAgent.co.uk, Colby Short, said: “An overall increase in the time to sell will come as no surprise, given the industry-wide restrictions implemented during the height of the Covid-19 crisis.
"While the market has seen a rejuvenated level of demand bolstered by the recent stamp duty holiday, many homebuyers will have to act quickly to see the benefit, while in some areas they are unlikely to benefit at all due to much longer transaction times.
"For those thinking of selling, it’s important to understand how long it may take in your local market and how this can impact your ongoing purchase. It’s also sensible to give yourself a time buffer, as the process of finding an agent and listing your property can often take as long as three weeks before your property even goes live."
