Rural Home Prices Surpass Urban Growth – Nationwide Insights

People who own properties in rural areas have seen their house prices increase by an average of 23% over the last five years, compared to an 18% rise in the value of homes in towns or cities.

According to Nationwide’s latest House Price Index, rural terraced properties have seen the strongest rate of price growth, while urban flats have recorded the weakest.

The report shows that while the effects of increased demand for rural housing during 2021 and 2022 caused by the pandemic have now faded, house price growth in areas with more countryside continue to outpace those in more urban areas.

Toby Leek, NAEA Propertymark President, said: “Rural houses continue to show as a popular choice amongst home movers even after the spike seen on the back of the COVID pandemic. A shift in trends, such as remote working, a desire for more outdoor space and changes to many people’s general cost of living budgets have pushed some to move to more rural locations.

“Generally, these types of homes can offer some additional perks such as additional space both inside and out, privacy and a different pace of life.”

Nationwide’s findings indicate that the majority (63%) of house moves were within the same type of area, with the biggest flow being within large towns or cities. Around 9% of moves were from towns / cities to rural areas (villages or hamlets), although this was partially offset by 7% who moved from rural to more urban areas.

However, amongst those who moved to a different type of area, there was a significant difference by age group, with younger people (those aged 25-34) tending to move to more urban areas, whilst older age groups, particularly 55+, favouring more rural areas.

Andrew Harvey, senior economist at Nationwide, said: “Our survey data shows that a bigger property or garden was the top reason cited by those moving in the last five years, which may in part reflect the ‘race for space’ seen during the pandemic.”

A third of survey respondents (33%) purchased a detached property, with just 15% buying a flat. Looking at the flows between property types, it appears the majority of home movers ‘traded up’.

“Amongst those buying in rural locations, 41% of those surveyed bought a detached house, with a further 29% buying a semi-detached. But it is actually rural terraced properties that have seen the strongest price growth between December 2019 and December 2024, with average prices increasing by 25%. (Note that due to data availability, these figures exclude Scottish local authorities).

Harvey continued: “Rural semi-detached also increased by 25% over the same period, with urban semis seeing a 24% rise. Meanwhile, rural detached properties increased by 21%. Flats saw considerably weaker price growth, particularly those in predominantly urban areas, which increased by just 6% over the last five years.

“Despite rural areas performing better overall, only four out of the 20 top performing local authorities in 2024 were classed as predominantly rural. Tewkesbury in Gloucestershire, which is just north of the Cotswolds, was the top performing rural authority in 2024, with average prices rising by 11%.”

Top performing local authorities (2024)

Note: See map attached highlighting above locations

Of the 349 local authorities in Great Britain, 212 (61%) are classified as predominantly urban, 89 (26%) as predominantly rural, while the remaining 48 (14%) are classed as urban with significant rural. The South West has the highest proportion of rural local authorities, with over 50% being predominantly rural (14 out of 26), while London unsurprisingly has none.

Top performing rural local authorities (2024)

Note: No rural local authorities in London

Top performing urban local authorities (2024)