Bargain homes, if you look carefully
Up to 9% taken off prices in parts of the county
Homes in some parts of Kent are selling at an average of 3% under the asking price, representing significant savings for buyers.
However, in other postcode areas, it’s a different story, with property selling, on average, above the list price.
Figures from the HomeOwners Alliance show the average house price in the county is £270,000.
In east Kent (Whitstable round the coast to Hythe, together with Canterbury) the average home sold for 97% of the original price.
Buyers here achieved some of the best reductions, with up to 9% taken off asking prices.
The TN postcode, which includes Tunbridge Wells, Tonbridge, Sevenoaks and Ashford, also saw average 3% reductions.
Maidstone and Tonbridge and Malling local authority areas, covered by the ME postal code, saw their properties generally sold for the asking price.
The north of the county – Dartford, Gravesham and Longfield (DA postcode) – saw homes sold for more than advertised, with homes selling, on average, at 101% of the asking price.
Its proximity to London and good transport links are seen as the factors behind this.
This month, people queued around the block in Dartford at a Bellway Homes development, with 33 homes snapped up in less than a day.
Gavin Curd, managing director of Simon Miller and Fine & Country estate agents, said his nine Kent branches had generally been seeing prices hold steady across the county. The firm mainly covers the ME and TN postcodes.
He said: “Properties are selling well. Not quite as fast as they were six months ago – whether that’s to do with Brexit uncertainty I’m not sure.
He said it was vital not to overprice a home.
“If a house is on the market for six months and it goes stagnant, that’s when people come in with an offer below the market price,” said Mr Curd.
“They are less likely to do that with properties just on the market and correctly valued.”