Thursday 14 February 2019

Where have all the Sold signs gone in Chichester?


There are currently 159 properties in Chichester showing as sold (subject to contract), which is the lowest figure in the five years that I’ve been tracking the market on a weekly basis. A year ago there were 181 properties sold, which means we’ve seen a drop of 12% in 12 months. In fact, there has been a reasonably steady decline since a record high of 292 properties were showing as sold in June 2017.

And yet at £369,000 the average asking price of the properties for sale is up around 10% since last year (when the average asking price was £335,000). So, it appears that sellers are continuing to raise the asking price of their property even though fewer people are actually buying. Would the market be slowing down anyway (with the uncertainty of Brexit being a staple answer as to why) or is it the rising prices that are stopping people from buying?

Based on there being 462 properties on the market in Chichester, we can calculate that 34% are showing as sold. A year ago not only were there more properties sold (181) but there were a greater number of properties on the market (490). Even so, this suggests there was still a higher proportion of properties that were sold (37%) than there is now. For reference, at its recent peak in June 2017 there were 632 properties on the market, with a whopping 46% sold.

As ever with statistics like these though, they don’t mean a great deal unless you compare them against something. So, let’s look at a few areas nearby to see which area has the highest proportion of sold properties compared to the overall market:

Chichester - 462 total - 159 sold (34%)
Bognor Regis - 1,019 total - 380 sold (37%)
Midhurst - 120 total - 27 sold (23%)
Petersfield - 214 total - 75 sold (35%)
Petworth - 74 total - 27 sold (36%)
Portsmouth - 2,479 total - 1,103 sold (44%)
Waterlooville - 977 total - 388 sold (40%)
Worthing - 1,981 total - 877 sold (44%)


It seems that the largest locations with a higher proportion of ‘cheaper’ properties also happen to have the largest proportion of sold property on the market. It might be that Chichester’s sellers, who are used to the higher prices, may need to re-evaluate their asking price to be able to sell their property in what is looking like a more challenging market.

To follow how many properties are for sale, sold, to let and let agreed on a weekly basis, sign up to the weekly Chichester Property News e-mail by visiting www.tinyurl.com/chipropertynews



(This article was featured in the Chichester Observer's property section on February 15, 2019)

Clive Janes, CRJ Lettings



If you are looking for an agent that is well establishedprofessional and communicative in Chichester, then contact us to find out how we can get the best out of your investment property.

E-mail me on clive@crjlettings.co.uk or call 01243 624 599.

Don't forget to visit the links below to view my previous buy-to-let deals and Chichester Property News articles:

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