House prices in the Yorkshire district of Calderdale, and some regions in close proximity to Glasgow and Edinburgh, are rising faster than anywhere else in the United Kingdom, according to recent figures.
Calderdale’s Surprising Property Boom
Located in the serenely beautiful Upper Calder Valley, Calderdale is a Yorkshire district that comfortably houses over 200,000 residents. It includes several towns such as Todmorden, Hebden Bridge, Mytholmroyd, Luddendenfoot, and Sowerby Bridge.
According to a recent study by online estate agents Zoopla, house prices in Calderdale have skyrocketed significantly. The borough, which is a part of the Yorkshire and Humber region, experienced a massive 4.3% increase in house prices from 2022 to 2023. The data indicated an average annual price jump of £7,250, leading to an average house price that now stands at a solid £174,100.
Scotland’s Promise – North Lanarkshire
The report also revealed a surge in property prices in other regions, with Scotland’s North Lanarkshire taking second place. Although the increase here was slightly less at 3%, it was still a notable uptrend, considering the overall lower average price – £120,300. Even with a lower average price, the absolute value increase recorded was £3,460, highlighting the potential of this sector, despite it being just about half that of Calderdale.
The rest of the top 10 areas charting high annual price appreciations are all located in Scotland or Wales. The increases in these regions ranged from £2,830 in Dumfries and Galloway to an impressive £5,660 in Stirling.
Rightmove Reinforces Calderdale’s Rising Popularity
The rise of Calderdale’s property market is not only documented by Zoopla’s data but also supported by separate research published by property platform Rightmove. They pinpointed that, in the past year, the general average price of Calderdale properties capped at £182,653.
A spokesperson from the company further said that out of the majority of sales recorded in Calderdale during the last year, terraced properties were most popular, selling at an average price of £140,083. Semi-detached properties followed, going for a median price of £191,408, and finally, detached properties, which sold for an average of £359,176.
Rightmove’s research solidifies Calderdale’s upward trend by revealing that sales prices in Calderdale over the past year increased by an impressive 2% compared to the previous year and were up 12% from the 2020 peak of £163,070.
The Magnetic Appeal of Calderdale
Nestled in the Pennines and located equidistant between the bustling cities of Manchester and Leeds, Calderdale’s strategic location, paired with its natural beauty, has continually drawn interest. This scenic area has been a muse for various renowned creatives, including poets Ted Hughes and Sylvia Plath and legendary author Emily Bronte, whose famed novel “Wuthering Heights” was published in 1847. It also happens to be the backdrop for the popular BBC police drama “Happy Valley”.