London property prices: In 16 weeks the value of this three bed terrace shot up £340k
While the data is telling us the London property market is cooling, there are still plenty of signs of just how crazy it can be. Here’s one.
It’s not a super skinny house with a bed next to the kitchen, no, this time, it’s an almost average house in zone 2- but its value has shot up a massive, almost ridiculous, 61 per cent in the space of just 16 weeks, gaining £340,000.
In June the property in Hatley Road sold for £550,000. Back on the market again, it now has an asking price of £890,000.
The three bed terrace round the corner from Finsbury Park tube station is now closer to the million pound mark than the just over half-a-million pounds it sold for in June.
Whether the seller will actually get that asking price or not is unclear, but clearly they and the estate agent think a buyer would be willing to fork out almost two-thirds more four months on.
They do say the property has just been refurbished, and it sure does look as “delightful” as they say in the marketing information, but let’s put that in perspective.
The average house price on the road has increased 17 per cent in the last year according to Zoopla, where the property is being advertised. The average selling price has risen from £498,250 five years ago to £653,666.
The average asking price on the street is £539,190, but according to Zoopla’s Zed-Index, its own calculation based on estimates, property values are £562,022, or £644,715 for a terrace.
If we take a look at Land Registry figures which show the prices paid across the entire borough, the average value of a house in Islington in July was £645,272.
Whether that makeover has created a property outlier on the road, or it's a sign the property market isn't cooling off quite as much as data suggest, no wonder first-time buyers in London despair.
That’s one lucky seller that could soon be turning a more than healthy profit, however. Not taking into account the unknown costs of the refurbishment, that's a profit of £340,000 in 16 weeks, or £21,250 a week.