Third quarter sees market at an all time high

During the three months to September 2010 the average price of a property sold in the W4 area was £669,548. This was up by 11.3% over the same period in 2009 which is well ahead of the rise seen elsewhere in London and in the country as a whole.

Unlike in previous months the rise seems more broadly based with flats, terraced and semi-detached houses rising at similar rates. No detached houses were sold during the quarter so the figures are not distorted by larger ticket sales as they have been in previous releases.

Christian Harper of local estate agent OliverFinn said, "We have certainly enjoyed a much better quarter than expected. Buyers numbers have reduced however the quality of buyers is second to none. Stock still remains paramount to the market stability. Instruction levels were expected to fall due to seasonal activity however good proceedable buyers will not wait forever and the market could stall if stock levels do not improve at the start of 2011. What a great and unexpected opportunity for sellers to capitalise whilst the going is good. I feel that European economics will play a larger part in market confidence during the next quarter with all eyes currently focused on Ireland to demonstrate its ability to support herself - fingers crossed."

Volumes are also on the increase with the number of sales in the quarter at the highest level since the last quarter of 2007. Overall sales rose by 14.7% compared with last year. Most notable has been the increase in sales in terraced houses which have seen sales rise by over 50% compared with last year.

Derek Fletcher of Edward d'Arc said, "These latest figures illustrate how robust the local Chiswick property market has proved despite the turbulent economic times we are all experiencing. Strong house prices reflect not just a general lack of supply but also a noticeable increase in buyers moving out from areas such as Holland Park and Kensington, selling to overseas investment buyers keen to take advantage of the weak pound and buying prime central London property."

Matt Thompson - manager at Featherstone Leigh also is seeing increased activity. He said, "We have noticed a lift in the number of applicants registering recently, so renewed interest in the market is already building which is resulting in good offers being made. "

For London as a whole the Land Registry data shows an increase of 8.8% in September over the same month in 2009. The average price of a London residential properly is now £340,344. This is the smallest annual rise since December 2009. Compared to August prices fell by 0.6%

The Nationwide's House Price index is suggesting a lower overall increase in prices than the Land Registry. This is based on offer prices for homes rather than achieved sale prices. Martin Gahbauer, Nationwide's Chief Economist, said, "October saw a continuation of the modest downward trend in house prices that began at the start of the summer. The average price of a typical UK property edged down by a seasonally adjusted 0.7% month-on month
in October."

He now thinks that a second round of quantitative easing will be supportive for the property market.

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September 2010 Property Sales in Chiswick

* Some properties excluded from this table at owners' request

Property sales in August 2010

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Source: Land Registry

January 13, 2011