Average Time it Takes to Sell a Home Falls by 44 Days

While the market may have started to slow where house price growth is concerned, the time it’s taking to sell a home across England and Wales has fallen by an average of 44 days.

The latest data released by estate agent comparison site, GetAgent, looks at the average time it has taken to sell a home based on sales to have completed over the last 12 months versus the date they were originally listed and how this compares to the previous 12 months.

The figures show that over the last 12 months across England and Wales, it has taken an average of 250 days to sell a home. That’s 44 days quicker than the average of 294 days seen across the previous 12 months.

Quickest places to sell a home

In terms of the quickest areas of the market, the SW1Y postcode of Westminster is currently home to the shortest time frame to sell a home, averaging just 79 days over the last year.

Northumberland’s TD15 postcode also ranks high, with the average home taking just 92 days to sell, with SY15 in Powys (117), LA17 in South Lakeland (121) and SA34 in Carmarthenshire (125) also ranking in the top five.

Largest reductions in time to sell a home

The W1D postcode in the London Borough of Westminster has seen the average time it’s taking to sell a home fall to 232 days over the last 12 months, a huge 981 day reduction versus the 1,213 days it took for homes completing over the previous 12 months.

Westminster’s W1W postcode (-652), South Lakeland’s LA17 (-501), the LL63 postcode in Anglesey (-473) and the SY15 postcode of Powys (-417) have also seen some of the largest reductions in the average time to sell for homes completing over the last year.

Co-founder and CEO of GetAgent.co.uk, Colby Short, commented:

“Despite the property market instability spurred by last September’s mini budget, home sellers and buyers are continuing to transact and at a greater speed over the last 12 months when compared to the 12 months prior.

In some areas there has been a dramatic reduction in the time it takes to sell a home, although this certainly hasn’t been the case across the board.

For those who are in need of a quick sale the best plan of attack is to price realistically based on the current market conditions of your local area, ensure you have your paperwork in place so that you are ready to act when needed, and consider opting for a first-time buyer or buyer without an ongoing chain, even if it does mean accepting a marginally lower price for your home.”