What Are The Best Property Hotspots of 2022

At times, the property market in the UK seems like the Duracell bunny of the personal finance world. Apart from a few occasional months where the economic blues hit, it remains stable at worst and stratospheric at best (if you’re a seller, not so great for first-time buyers). During Covid this trend heated up thanks to stamp duty holidays and the change in people’s working habits, among other reasons.

As a result, we’ve seen shifts in property hotspots as people have left the cities to work from home, away from the bustle of the cities.

So where are the current hotspots and what impact does it have on important related considerations like home insurance?

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Ten-year price growth

According to Bloomberg Margate on the east coast of England was the top house price hotspot, with the typical asking price there having increased by 102.5% from £145,311 in January 2012 to £294,209 in January 2022.

In fact, Rightmove say that the top 10 places with the highest percentage growth in asking prices (outside London) between January 2012 and 2022 are mostly in the South-East, with Horfield and Bedminster, both near Bristol, being the exceptions.

Year On Year changes

When comparing year-on-year house price growth the list looks more diverse. Rightmove’s March2022 research shows the historic port of Brixham in the Devon borough of Torbay has seen the biggest rise in asking prices in Britain over the past year. Demand for homes in Brixham has pushed average asking prices up by 25% to £329,699, which is still below the national average. The list also includes Jesmond in Newcastle (23%), Newton-Le-Willows in Merseyside (21%) and Heysham in Lancashire (20%).

Home Insurance

Buying in a property hotspot comes with other implications to consider. If you're lucky enough to be able to buy a great home in a dream location, finding the best home insurance can be tricky. Sometimes you need to compare home insurance from specialist experts and here are the top five questions to consider:

1.     What’s your home made of?

Whether it’s a wood-framed cabin or a barn conversion or something as simple as a flat roof, how the property is constructed makes a difference to the ease and cost of finding home insurance.

2.     Where is it located?

Your new home may be in a property hotspot but if it’s in a flooding hotspot too that will affect your home insurance. A picture postcard view of the sea is great as long as the sea doesn’t decide to pay a visit. Other considerations are if the property is located near to trees(which could fall onto your home) and if there’s a high crime area nearby.

3.     How will you use your home?

Maybe you’re looking for a holiday home, or just somewhere to live where you can work from home more easily. Its intended use can have an impact on your home insurance, especially if your home working is an unusual job.

4.     What is the applicant’s history?

If you have an unusual job deemed high-risk – that could be a jeweller, a street trader or a tattoo artist – that an increase your premiums, especially if you’re going to use your new home as a place of business. But that’s not all. As with other types of insurance, your previous claims history can affect your premiums, as can any history of convictions.

5.     Are there pets and children?

Pets can cause a lot of damage so make sure you mention it to your insurer so that you’re covered. A dog is fine, a pack of wolves and a tiger might raise some red flags. Likewise, children also raise the risk and therefore the price recent research showed. The average household without any children in it pays £126 a year but that rises to £161 for quotes on homes with any children, according to Consumer Intelligence, while families with three children living at home pay an extra £69 a year for a total bill of £195.

And of course, don’t forget that nowhere remains a hot spot forever. This year’s also-ran could be next year’s medalist, so buying in an up-and-coming area could mean your home turns to gold a little way down the line.

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