A property’s desirability is often a popular subject when we are talking to homeowners and local investors. Sure, you will find that Kirsty and Phil are right, and it is all about “location, location, location”, but the savvy property hunter has something else on their minds these days, and that is “education, education, education”.
More and more people searching for a home are looking at a property’s proximity to a good school before signing on the dotted line. If you already have children, the importance of this cannot be taken lightly, while it is also something to think about for those who are planning on starting a family in the near future.
Ofsted report and rank all schools in the UK, with their results having a huge effect on how desirable a school is. Consequently, this has a knock-on effect on demand for nearby housing.
If you look at the league tables, you will see that Ashley CofE Aided Primary School is one of the best local primary schools in KT12.
The figures don’t lie: in the last academic year, 93% of year six students hit the nationally expected target of level four and higher in the key areas of reading, writing and maths. It was also found that 45% of pupils hit the “above national average” level five. You can’t argue with a low pupil to adult ratio either. Ashley CofE Aided Primary School has an average class size of 23.1, which means more teacher attention for each pupil and a greater chance of child progression.
These excellent results have impacted both local schools and property prices. The 2km zone around Ashley CofE Aided Primary School has an average sold property price of £602,800 in July 2016, whereas 7km away the average sold property price was £542,900, a 9.9% premium.
It is not quite the same story for secondary schools but there are good reasons for this. Your average secondary school is large, much larger than a primary school, so it takes in more pupils every year. This means that its catchment zone spans further than primary school’s catchment zones. Parents do not need to live so close to a secondary school to be assured a place for their child.
The other issue is that according to the London School of Economics, the difference between the top and bottom 25% of secondary schools is not quite as dramatic as the top and bottom 25% of primary schools. A good primary school in KT12 is potentially going to have far more of an impact on a child than a good secondary school.
It’s not just buyers who look for property near a good quality school either. The number of renters across the country is increasing, with tenants now staying in rented homes for an average of four years. This opens up an opportunity for buy-to-let landlords to take advantage of properties available close to a school when they are looking for their next investment.
KT12 flat and house prices
The last 18 months have seen a seismic shift in the underlying dynamics of the UK economy. While the long term effects of Brexit on property prices remain to be seen, price levels in KT12 remain robust, as the adjoining chart shows. Prices for flats have increased 19.5% since August 2015 and house prices have increased 15.2% since July 2016.
Sales in KT12 by quarters
It is the time of year when we can reflect on how the last four quarters have performed. The adjacent chart splits the total number of sales for all property types into quarters. Not surprisingly, first quarter of 2016 was the strongest quarter with 225 sales (33.9%) in KT12. The last quarter of 2015 saw 201 sales, which equates to 30.3%.
What jobs do people do in KT12?
The percentage of people employed in various industry sectors is often a good indicator of the distinct character of an area. In KT12, the largest number of jobs were in Retail, taking up 14.2% of jobs. Technical professions had the second largest number of jobs with 11.3% of jobs.
The mix of bedrooms and property types in KT12 The number of bedrooms in houses and flats in KT12 is a useful indicator of the type of housing stock available. In KT12, the mix is:
If you are interested in talking about the effect primary schools have on the KT12 property market, why not get in touch? Or perhaps you just want a general chat regarding buying and selling property? We would love to hear from you.
Source: ResiAnalytics, Office for National Statistics and Land Registry © Crown copyright 2016. Note: Dotted lines indicate estimates based on historical patterns.
