North Dorset homes see highest price rise in county, research reveals

A property site has revealed a surge in prices for Dorset seaside homes, with North Dorset seeing the highest rise in the area in the last four years.

New market research from Zoopla has shown that across the UK, the number of houses for sale has increased by a fifth in the past year.

This increase in supply correlates with a marked rise in price in the past four years with site statistics showing that north and west Dorset saw the highest increase in the Dorset area, at 22.1% and 21.4% respectively since February 2020.

As of February 2024, the average house price in north Dorset costs £333,800 with the average home cost in west Dorset slightly higher at £353,500, according to Zoopla's house price index.

East Dorset followed closely behind west Dorset with a 21.3% increase, then Weymouth and Portland at 20.7%, Purbeck at 19.8%, Christchurch at 19.7%, Poole at 19.2% and Bournemouth 17.2%.

It also revealed, across the south west of England, estate agents typically have around two-and-a-half times as many homes for sale as they did in spring 2022.

Despite this, it is now taking longer on average to sell a property compared with spring 2022, taking 23 days longer in the area as a knock-on effect from the rise in supply, Zoopla said.

The website also revealed the impact of the coronavirus pandemic in creating a “race for space” in the property market, with many buyers looking to move to more rural and coastal locations.

In September 2021, demand for homes in Weymouth “skyrocketed” in the post-lockdown return to school, with the town seeing the biggest increase in the south west and the second biggest nationally.

However, according to Zoopla, the return to office or hybrid working means that some potential buyers may not be motivated to move for a lifestyle change, so the site is urging sellers ensure they set their prices realistically in the current market.

Izabella Lubowicka, senior property researcher at Zoopla, said: “Affordability continues to impact budgets.

“Sellers putting their homes on the market need to keep that in mind and ensure they are pricing their property realistically in order to achieve a sale.”

Sam Turner, director at Cornwall-based estate agent Kivells, added: “There has been a large increase in new properties coming to the market, which is giving buyers more choice.

“This is also assisting the moving process for our vendors as they have more to choose from on their onward purchases.”