House prices in Cornwall are noticeably softening

[Paq]

I'm not currently buying or selling but I keep an eye on the market in case this changes. The property market has really changed this year. A lot more listings, houses hanging around for months. More are being discounted "for a quick sale". Some heavily. E.g. a 2 bed cottage in a very desirable village has gone from £425k in April to £300k today.

Second home tax, increase in new builds, the AirBnB burst bubble, the drift back to cities and the economy generally all having an effect. I suspect the downward trend isn't over yet.

No particular point but I'd be interested in others' impressions.

We live in Cornwall and two neighbours were for sale.

One has just gone SSTC and has been on a year with no drop in price. Nice position but needs a lot of work and a weird big front, tiny back garden (as rest of garden was sold for an air b and b build). I can't believe that it hasn't actually sold for significantly below asking.

The other is an elderly lady that saw a GFF for sale in a posh part of town. Her dated but lovely bungalow was on the market 6 months, didn't drop, and then pulled out when the GFF sold.

I assume the GFF had been on 6 months too.

Our prices went stupid during COVID - I'm not surprised. The market for holidays is saturated, there's little well paid work down here. I mean.......simply, we are back to normal. Not a surprise house prices are more normal!

With the addition of double council tax (or are they still avoiding it by letting and claiming business rates and a small business reduction?)

What I would say is

1. Make sure you want to live here before you buy
2. I suspect renovated, good positioned, property will sell or just get taken off the market - only the stuff that has to sell will keep reducing and
3. Renovation is extortionate! And it's really hard to even find someone to turn up to quote down here, let alone do the work.

Good point about renovation prices. The "do-er uppers" used to be priced for a rising market and affordable building costs.

Agree!

I always tell people to spend a while winter here before they move

I've lived in two Devon/Cornwall seaside tourist towns in my 58 year life. Born in one. Moved to the other when I was 24.

What surprised me with COVID was the sheer speed people made what I consider long term decisions. However, whilst the holiday market is definitely saturated, I'm not seeing those properties currently being resold. There are no more for sale on my hill than there ever have been.

I think the market price drops are not that a lot of property is for sale but that simply no one much wants to be here and locals still can't afford them based on mainly low wage or entrepreneurial incomes.

Everywhere that's nice now is a bit "Disneyland". I can walk to eat out with a myriad of choices from cafes, cocktail bars to Michelin stars. I have a choice of about 17 places for a drink. Luckily I suppose my town stays pretty lively all year round with just a few less people in January and February.

But there's no butcher. No main supermarket. Kids have had to move away for careers.

This isn't a moan, it's reality, but it is very different from when I grew up and even when my kids grew up. It's like living in "Epcot: Cornwall"

I Live in Cornwall and where I am, the ones coming on the market are selling fairly quickly.

House next door to my parents sold in a couple of months for £10k under the asking price.

About bloody time.

@HelpMeGetThrough were they all in pretty decent condition?

I know what you mean about EPCOT. We've just been into town for some shoes, on the counter was a stand of beads representing 'your Cornish adventure'. This didn't include the toilets in the local secondary school or driving a tractor to pick up your GCSE results.

My elderly neighbour is trapped in her 'done up badly 20 years ago, but wants too much' it's been on for three years, 2 agents and dropped 100k.

More and more people are coming off mortgage fixes that were secured before the 2022 interest rate rises.

So affordability is steadily reducing over time.

Doer uppers are also starting to reduce as people realise the cost of doing them up is much greater than it was.

Yes. Parents neighbours house was fine.

Ones around here are all in good condition too. Not new builds as they were all built in the late 60s, early 70s.

Sound like they might have room to breathe, gardens and parking too! All big assets in Cornwall.

Our house s OK but isn't "all that" but we've 6 parking spaces, sea views, a flat very large garden and a few hundred metres easy walking access to the sea. That's what will sell our house if we ever move, not the house itself.

I keep an eye on the Cornwall market too and I agree, houses are hanging around longer. Council tax and the changes to letting regulations are having an effect I reckon.

I think that is good advice for any move to a new area, but especially in tourist areas.

In the areas of the West Country I know best prices are holding surprisingly well. As with the rest of the country - popular areas with decent stock and good services are holding their prices well. I’ve heard that coastal properties are a bit softer but not sure how true that is, I imagine its patchy much like every other region.

Definitely room to breathe. All have good sized front and rear gardens with drives that hold at least two cars.

we are a corner plot, so get the side garden too.

@Navigatinglife100 your house sounds ideal!

A relative is selling his late mother's house in another very desirable village (lovely primary school, pub, shop, village hall, nice community etc.).

Two months so far and not even a sniff of interest. It's at least £100k / 20% overpriced IMO but the agent is notorious for giving people inflated notions of value.

Given that the house prices in Cornwall are totally out of kilter with incomes and went even more crazy during the pandemic, it would be surprising if they weren't 'softening'. I'm sure the large, second homes will not be selling for the sort of figures they achieved in 2021!

'Two months so far and not even a sniff of interest. It's at least £100k / 20% overpriced IMO but the agent is notorious for giving people inflated notions of value.'
I'm not in Cornwall but I've seen so many homes like this. Massively over priced, slow reductions but not by enough to attract a buyer.

Agreed.

We won't know what next door has sold for for quite some time but I'd be very surprised if the 425 isn't nearer 325/350. This is an empty place.

And that would also explain why the 425 bungalow didn't get sold and came off the market as it would be relatively similar in value but she would have needed the money to move to the flat.

If something can go up overnight to COVID prices, it can certainly come down!