Spring is a key season for the property market, and with many buyers trying to beat the stamp duty rise, this year has been particularly busy – the number of sales being agreed is 9% higher than this time in 2024 according to Rightmove! Read more about the property market nationally and in West Wales in this month’s House Price Index overview, including insights from Rightmove and Zoopla.

In Brief

Nationally the market has seen – 

• The average price of property coming to market for sale rose by 1.1% (+£3,876) this month to £371,870¹.
• This is in line with the long-term March average increase – many new sellers are pricing sensibly amid decade-high competition to sell¹.
• Massive log-jam of 575,000 moves in the legal completion process, with many trying to beat March’s stamp duty deadline¹.
• The number of sales being agreed is 9% higher than at this time in 2024, a positive sign for the market post-stamp-duty increase, and the number of new sellers is now 8% ahead of this time last year¹.
• The average five-year fixed mortgage rate is now 4.74%, down from the peak of 6.11% in July 2023, but only marginally lower than the 4.84% at this time last year¹.
• Zoopla says that House price inflation has slowed to 1.8% as the supply of homes for sale outpaces the growth in sales agreed².
• Sales agreed continue to rise, up 5% year-on-year².
• Zoopla expects agreed sales to continue increasing, but rising supply and static mortgage rates will temper the rate of price inflation².
• ​​It says the average UK house price is set to rise by 2.5% by the end of the year².

In terms of the Welsh property market –

• The average house price in Wales is now £262,795, up 2.9% over the last month and up 2.5% year on year¹.
• The average number of days for a Welsh property to find a buyer has fallen to 80¹.

¹Source – Rightmove

²Source – Zoopla

National Overview

Here is our monthly overview of the trends that Rightmove and Zoopla – two of the biggest names in the property market – have been seeing over the last month. 

Rightmove’s Insights – 

Rightmove says that historic averages show that March 2025 is likely to be one of the strongest months of the year for sellers. However, this year sellers are facing a decade-high level in competition to find a buyer. Sellers who are successfully finding buyers in the current market are working hard with their agent to price competitively and ensure the best possible presentation of their home.

In England the stamp duty deadline is a key milestone, with many cost conscious buyers doing everything they can to complete their move before the change comes in and avoid unnecessary extra tax payment. As a result there’s a log-jam of 575,000 moves going through the legal completion process.

Rightmove also adds that one of the clouds hanging over the market are the persistently high mortgage rates. Colleen Babcock, property expert at Rightmove, says: “While there’s now more of an understanding among movers that rates aren’t heading back to previously ultra-low levels, many will have been hoping that they would drop more quickly.”

Zoopla’s Insights – 

Zoopla highlights that house price inflation is starting to slow after recovering over the last 12 months. It says the annual rate of UK house price inflation dropped to 1.8% in February, down from 1.9% in January. While prices are still rising faster than a year ago, they expect that to moderate in the coming months as the buyers’ market continues.

It says that the number of sales agreed continues to increase – it’s up 5% on the same time a year ago, with demand 10% higher. In addition, the number of homes for sale is 11% higher than this time last year, and expected to rise further during the spring. According to Zoopla nearly 30% of homes are listed for sale between March and May every year.

It also says that concerns over inflation mean that fewer base rate cuts are expected through 2025 and so hopes that mortgage rates may fall further are reduced. However, average mortgage rates have stabilised in recent months at around 4.4%, up slightly on 4% at the end of 2024.

Regional Insight from Cardigan Bay Properties

We specialise in the property market in West Wales and monitor developments here throughout the year to give you the best, most accurate advice. We cover the key regions of Ceredigion, Carmarthenshire and Pembrokeshire, and this month Helen Worrall, one of our founders, outlines the key trends we’ve seen through March 2025. If you’d like to find out more please get in touch. 

Over the past month we’ve seen a surge in the number of properties coming on to the market. This is largely due to home owners receiving their council tax bills for 2025/26. Those with second homes in the area are seeing a considerable increase and are taking the decision to sell rather than continue paying the increased rate. 

We’re also seeing first time buyers out in force, viewing properties and agreeing sales, which is hugely positive for the whole market in West Wales. 

The overall number of viewings we held in March 2025 was up 24% on March 2024, underlining the demand that currently exists in the market. We’ve also seen a 7% increase in the number of buyers registering with us in March 2025, compared to March 2024.

Overall, we’re seeing a lot of positivity in the market across our regions. With changes in the council tax resulting in some second home owners choosing to sell, this is bringing new properties onto the market, broadening the choice and attracting new buyers.

Your Regional Insights

Here we give you an overview of the latest House Price Index results for our key regions – Ceredigion, Pembrokeshire and Carmarthenshire. Please note, that each month these figures are two to three months behind due to the Land Registry taking longer to register new sales, so this report includes sales up to the end of January 2025.

To help you follow the trends for these regions, the graphs below show figures from July 2019 (pre-Covid pandemic) to January 2025.

CEREDIGION

In Ceredigion January 2025 saw a drop in the average property price, which now stands at £229,785 – down from £235,028 in December 2024. This fall has been seen across all of the different property types – detached houses are now at £307,645 (down from £314,526); semi-detached properties are at £196,939 (down from £201,136); terraced properties are at £173,924 (down from £178,051) and flats are at £111,097 (down from £114,518). 

In terms of the yearly percentage change, overall properties in the region were down 4.9%. The biggest drops have been seen for flats – down 6%- and detached houses, which are down 5.8%, but both semi-detached and terraced properties are also down on the year.

The monthly percentage change has also seen a fall, down 2.2%, with the biggest falls seen for flats (down 3%) and terraced properties (down 2.3%).

View the full Ceredigion report.

PEMBROKESHIRE

Average property prices in Pembrokeshire increased slightly in January 2025 – up to £222,751, from £221,299 in December 2024. An increase was seen across all of the property types, except for flats, which experienced a very slight fall – down to £121,692, from £121,793 in December 2024.

In terms of the yearly percentage change, property prices in the region are up 5.4%, with the biggest increases seen for semi-detached properties (up 6.9%) and terraced properties (up 6.2%). Over the year, detached properties were up 4.3% and flats up 2.8%.

Looking at the monthly percentage change, and there’s a small increase – January 2025 was up 0.7% overall. Flats were the only property type to experience a small drop of 0.1%, while semi-detached properties saw the biggest monthly change – up 0.9%.

View the full Pembrokeshire report.

CARMARTHENSHIRE

The average price of all property types in Carmarthenshire fell slightly in January 2025 – following a fall in December 2024. The average property price in the region is now £197,267. For detached properties the average price is £281,323; for semi-detached it is £181,465; for terraced properties it’s £148,616; while for flats it is £96,147.

When we look at the yearly percentage change in the region, property prices are actually up 7%, with the biggest increase seen for semi-detached and terraced properties – both up 7.8%.

However, the monthly percentage change for January 2025 is down very slightly at -0.2%. The biggest fall was seen for flats – down 0.8%, followed by terraced properties – down 0.3%, detached properties – down 0.2% and semi-detached properties saw no change over the month.

View the full Carmarthenshire report.

CURRENT UK HOUSE PRICE INDEX

* As of January 2025, the average house price in the UK is £268,548, and the index stands at 102.9. Property prices have risen by 0.2% compared to the previous month, and risen by 4.9% compared to the previous year.

*Details provided by the Land Registry. For more information on the House Price Index please CLICK HERE

Please note that the stats provided by the UK House Price Index are live and constantly evolving.