Buying a house in this economy is no mean feat.
It can be an emotionally draining process, notwithstanding the struggles to save for a deposit during a cost-of-living crisis.
And the surge in prices doesn’t help either. In some areas across Kent, a semi-detached home costs £80,000 more in 2025 than it did in 2020.
But that’s nothing compared to 2023, when house prices in the county reached their peak. In places like Thanet the same type of home was nearly £100K more in 2023 than in 2020.
I analysed Land Registry data from 13 local authority areas over five years to track how the market has shifted from the most expensive to the cheapest places to buy.
Here’s what I found.
It’s probably not surprising to learn that Sevenoaks remains the most expensive place to buy a home in Kent, closely followed by Tunbridge Wells and Dartford.
Meanwhile, Swale, Dover and Thanet have retained their position as the least expensive places to purchase a property in the county.
But where have prices risen the most?
The biggest price increase has occurred in Medway as a semi-detached home cost 23% more in 2025 than it did in 2020 – that’s £65,808 more.
House prices have also gone up by 21% in Thanet which means a semi-detached home now costs around £57,483 more than it did five years ago.
Gravesham has also seen an uplift in sale prices with the same type of home costing £65,505 more last year compared to five years prior.
What is interesting is that in 2022 and 2023, house prices in places near the coast like Thanet and Folkestone boomed.
In 2020, a semi-detached home in Thanet cost £271,056, but by 2023 it cost £361,711, meaning the same type of house cost more than £90,000 extra in just three years.
In Folkestone & Hythe, on average it cost £283,622 to buy a semi in 2020 but prices climbed in 2021, 2022 and 2023 which means the same type of home cost £62,113 more in 2023 than it did in 2020.
In Medway, the average semi-detached home jumped from £276,666 in 2020 to £354,384 in 2023 — a staggering 28% increase in three years. That meant the same type of home was £77,718 more in just three years.
The general pattern reveals that from 2020 until 2023, house prices soared, but in 2024 they dipped. In 2025, for the most part, prices started to increase again across the different local authority areas.
However, for Thanet, Ashford and Tunbridge Wells, the cost of buying a home in the area continued on a downward trajectory in 2025.
Ashford
The overall cost of a semi-detached house in Ashford has gone up by 15% since 2020 – that’s roughly £44,667 more.
In January 2020, this type of home would set you back around £287,852. This rose by 3% in 2021 but jumped by 8% in 2022, to £323,363.
This climb continued with a further 6% jump in 2023, with a semi-detached home costing £343,887, on average. This means the same type of house cost £56,035 more in less than three years.
However, this growth began to stall in 2024, when the price of a semi plummeted by 2.5% to £335,276. The price fell further by January 2025, with an average of £332,520.
In 2020, the data shows a detached home in Ashford cost £472,375. In 2025, this averaged at £542, 415 – an increase of 14%.
However, in line with the pattern, property prices in the area peaked in 2023, when a detached home averaged at £563,664, representing a nearly 20% jump in value since 2020.
Dover
In Dover, a semi-detached home cost £264,604 on average in 2020. In 2025, the same type of property cost around £40K more at £304,811 – that’s a 15% jump.
In a five-year period, prices reached their peak in Dover in 2023, when an average semi-detached home in the area cost £320,680. This represents a 21% increase in the same type of home in less than two years.
By 2024, this dropped significantly, with an average semi-detached home in Dover costing £295,367, 7% less than the year before. The price remained more or less the same in 2025, with an average cost of £304,811.
For detached homes, the average cost was £430,802 in 2020, which reached its peak in 2023 at £518,890 – a 20% increase in less than three years.
From here, the cost started to decline, falling to an average of £478,730 in 2024, before increasing slightly by 2.8% in 2025, to £492,534.
Gravesham
Gravesham has seen a 19% increase in the cost of a semi-detached home in the last five years. This means the same type of home is around £65,505 more in 2025 than it was in 2020.
In 2021 and 2022, both semi-detached and detached properties rose in value, reaching their peak in 2023 at £406,357 (semi) and £644,732 (detached) respectively.
In 2020, the average semi-detached home in the area was £333,672, rising by 21% in 2023 to £406,357. It then dipped to £384,403 in 2024 before rising by 3% by January 2025, to an average of £399,177.
Meanwhile, a detached property in the area cost an average of £530,414 in 2020, increasing by 4% a year later, before increasing a further 6% in 2022 to £605,987 per home of that type on average.
By 2023, the price of a detached home in Gravesham reached its peak at £644,732. This dropped to £610,022 in 2024 but increased again in 2025 to £631,087.
Maidstone
The price of a semi-detached home in Maidstone has risen by 17% in five years from £317,847 to £374,008. However, prices in the area reached their highest at £377,609 in 2023.
In 2020, a semi-detached property cost £317,847 and rose by almost 2% in 2021 to £323,778.
The next year prices increased by 6% to £346,183, before seeing another uplift, this time of 9% in 2023 to £377,609.
But a year later, there was a 2% drop in price to £367,761. In 2025 there was a slight increase of 2%, bringing the cost to £374,008 on average in 2025.
This pattern was the same for detached houses which on average cost £526,845 in 2020 but rose by 15% in 2025 to £611,037. Again, prices peaked in 2023 at £619,450.
Medway
Medway has remained one of the cheaper areas to live over the past five years, although it is somewhere prices have increased the most.
Figures show a semi-detached house cost £276,666 on average in 2020, but the price jumped by 7% in a year, with the average moving to £297,239 in 2021.
This continued to rise in 2022 before peaking in 2023 at £354,384, a 28% increase in three years.
However, the cost started to dip in 2024 by around £20,000. In 2025, it climbed again by around £8,455 a year later, to an average price of £342,474.
In the five-year period, the cost of a detached house has also gone up by nearly £100K. That’s an increase of around 22% in five years.
As in all the cases across all of Kent, detached properties in Medway reached their height in 2023, costing £544,045 on average.
Sevenoaks
Sevenoaks has remained undefeated in its spot as the most expensive place to live in Kent.
Over the past five years, prices have increased by 18%, with a semi-detached home costing £82,553 more on average in 2025 than it did in 2020.
In 2020 a semi cost £435,166 on average.
Since then, the price has continued to climb and reached its peak last year at £517,719 on average, not far off 2023 levels where the cost sat at around £517,657.
Although the price dipped significantly in 2024 to £488,410, it has since risen by 6%.
Detached homes have steadily increased to around the £1 million mark.
In 2021, the average price of such a home was £822,937. A year later, it rose by around 1.5% but then increased significantly by 10% to £922,072.
The price continued to climb in 2023 to its peak of £986,446 but fell in 2024 by 9%.
However, a year later, prices surged again by 5% to the value of £979,326.
Swale
Over the past five years, Swale has remained one of the cheapest areas.
Despite this, the price of a semi-detached home has gone up by 18% in five years, costing an extra £47,881 more in 2025 compared to 2020.
Prices reached their peak in 2023 when the same type of property cost £322,857 on average, while a detached home would set you back around £489,252.
The 2023 levels represented as 23% increase in three years, but this stalled a year later when the cost went down by 4% which prices sitting at around £20,000 less.
By 2025, property prices increased ever so slightly, with a semi-detached house costing £309,785 and a detached costing £467,065.
Meanwhile, the cost of a detached home in Swale was up by 18% in 2025 when compared to 2020 levels.
People who purchased a property in the area in 2023 would have paid the highest prices, as a detached home averaged at around £489,252 during this year when prices peaked.
A year later in 2024 prices decreased by 5%, and increased ever so slightly a year later sitting at around £467,065 for a detached home.
Tonbridge
The cost of a semi-detached home in Tonbridge was 15% per cent more in 2025 than it was in 2020, or roughly £56,958 more.
As one of the more expensive areas to live in Kent, a semi-detached home cost £415,433 in 2025, while a detached home cost £688,920 on average.
In 2023, prices soared by 20% in three years. During this peak, the average cost of a semi-detached was £431,022, while a detached home went up to £719,040. That’s a difference of £37,000 in one year for a semi and £56,000 more for a detached.
In 2024, prices decreased by 7% for both semi-detached and detached homes but a year later in 2025 there was an uplift in prices again by 4%.
Tunbridge Wells
Tunbridge Wells has retained its spot as the second most expensive place to live in Kent over the past five years.
In five years, the cost of a semi-detached home has gone up by 18%, costing £74,148 more on average than in 2020.
A detached home has also gone up by 17% over five years and cost £122,794 more in 2025 than it did in 2021.
The price of a semi-detached home increased by 5% from 2020 to 2021, and a further 5% the year later. The biggest jump of 7% came in 2023 when the cost of a semi-detached home set buyers back £490,355 on average.
In three years from 2020 to 2023 the cost of a detached property increased by 19%, with prices reaching an average of £860,634 in 2023.
A year later, prices fell by 2% and have more or less stayed that same into 2025.
Canterbury
The cost of buying a home in Canterbury has remained much steadier and more consistent when compared to other areas, although prices have increased.
The price of a semi-detached home in Canterbury has gone up by 11% in five years. This means the same type of home is £34,462 more in 2025 than it was in 2020.
Prices increased year-on-year until 2023 when they reached their peak. A semi-detached home in 2023 was £54,638 more than in 2020, that’s a 17% increase.
Meanwhile, a detached home cost £83,362 more in 2023 than in 2020.
A year later, in 2024, prices dropped by 8% with a semi-detached home costing £335,274 and a detached costing £521,165 on average.
In 2025, prices increased again by 3%, with a semi-detached home costing around £345,765 on average and a detached around £535,815.
Dartford
Prices in Dartford have climbed by 15% in the last five years, with a semi-detached home costing £58,021 more in 2025 than in 2020.
Over the years, it has retained its spot as the third most expensive place to buy in the county.
In 2020, a semi cost £364,575, and prices continued to rise in 2021, 2022 and 2023.
By 2023, the price of a semi had risen by 16% and cost £59,303 more than three years prior.
The price of a detached home also went up by 14%, costing £710,430 on average during the peak of 2023.
The next year, in 2024 prices began to fall for both semi and detached homes by just over 1%.
However, in 2025 there was a small lift, meaning a semi cost £422,596 and a detached home cost £705,713.
Folkestone & Hythe
Over the past five years, Folkestone & Hythe has become a more expensive place to buy a home.
In 2020, it was the fifth cheapest place to live in Kent, but now it has surpassed Ashford and is the sixth cheapest place to buy.
A semi-detached home in Folkestone cost £53,303 more in 2025 than it did in 2020, which is an increase of 15%.
In 2020, it cost £283,622 to buy a semi, but prices climbed in 2021, 2022 and 2023 where it would set you back £345,735. That means the same type of home cost £62,113 more in 2023 than it did in 2020.
A year later price began to fall by 8% for both semi and detached homes.
Since then, the cost of buying has risen by 6% for both types of home, with a semi costing £336,925 and a detached home costing £531,245.
Thanet
In 2020, Thanet was the third cheapest place to live in Kent. But by 2023, it had climbed in price, overtaking Ashford, Folkestone & Hythe, and Medway, sitting somewhere in the middle.
However, it had settled back in its position as the third cheapest place to live, although the cost of the same type of home has increased by £57,483 on average. That’s an increase of 21% from 2020 to 2025.
In 2020, a semi-detached home in Thanet cost £271,056, but this started to increase in 2021, 2022 and 2023 when the same type of home cost £361,711. That means the same type of house cost over £90,000 more in 2023 than it did in 2020.
A year later, in 2024, prices decreased by 8%, and continued to decrease by less than 1% in 2025.
The price of a detached home in Thanet has gone up by 20% in five years. In 2020 it would set you back around £403, 418 but averaged at around £487,919 in 2025.
Interestingly, a detached home cost £50,000 more on average during the peak of 2023 – setting you back £538,158.
But since then, prices have continued to decrease in the area.
What does this pattern mean? I spoke to three property experts…
In the view of Maidstone-based property consultant John Oakley, the uplift in sale prices from 2020 to 2023 reflects the changes in behaviour throughout the pandemic.
The specialist, who previously managed a six-branch practice, said: “When people were working from home during the pandemic, they realised they could move out from London into Kent and get more for their money, which drove house prices up dramatically.
“To keep the market going, there was a stamp-duty holiday and because of that everyone was busting a gut to get in while they could save a lot of money on stamp-duty which drove prices up. But, at the end of the day, they still paid more money; they just didn’t have stamp duty to pay.
“When the stamp duty holiday ended and the help for first-time buyers ended it created a slump in the market.
“But once people got used to those changes, they start to look at buying again which creates demand and prices start to rise again. It’s the law of supply and demand.”
Stamp Duty is a tax you’ll need to pay if you buy a property in the UK, though only if the price of the property reaches a certain threshold.
The UK Stamp Duty holiday from July 2020 to September 2021 was a temporary tax relief measure designed to stimulate the housing market during the pandemic.
Saddat Abid, chief executive of property buying company Property Saviour, which works with homeowners across Kent and the wider South East who are navigating complex property situations, says the pattern he is seeing on the ground reflects something more nuanced than the headline figures suggest.
Dover and Thanet have seen some of the strongest recent price growth as buyers have continued searching for value at the more affordable eastern end of the county.
Canterbury, by contrast, has seen prices hold relatively steady.
“Kent has always attracted buyers priced out of London, and that dynamic hasn’t disappeared — it’s just changed shape,” Saddat said.
“Five years ago, the appeal was clear: you could get significantly more space for your money by crossing into Kent. What’s shifted is that the gap has narrowed considerably.
“The buyers who moved to Medway or Folkestone for the value are now sitting on assets that have appreciated substantially, which is great for them. But for the first-time buyer trying to get in now, the entry point is genuinely much harder to reach than it was.”
He says mortgage rates have eased from their 2023 peak, transaction volumes are recovering, and for buyers with solid deposits and good professional advice, there are still pockets of the county — particularly in Thanet, parts of Swale, and the towns along the East Kent coast — where value relative to the wider South East remains compelling.
But for the generation of Kent buyers who grew up watching their parents purchase homes in the county at a fraction of today’s prices, the transformation of the past five years has been “profound”.
Saddat added: “Kent has always felt like one of the more accessible parts of the South East for buyers who couldn’t stretch to London prices.
“That’s still true in relative terms. But relative affordability and actual affordability are two very different things, and right now, the gap between what a first-time buyer in Kent can realistically save and what the market asks them to spend has rarely been wider.”
Elliot Castle, chief executive of Castle Property Group, agrees the pandemic prompted a “fundamental shift” in the market and buyer behaviour, particularly in a commuter area like Kent.
He says the introduction of remote and hybrid working prompted many to explore the county as a more affordable and green space to live, with excellent transport links.
“As a result, demand surged while property listings remained constrained, pushing prices upwards over these three years from 2020-2023.
“The drop in 2024 wasn’t just seen in Kent, but nationwide, following the Bank of England raising rates to combat inflation, which meant the cost of servicing a mortgage increased, subsequently reducing demand among buyers.
“Many prospective buyers either paused, waited, or found their borrowing capacity reduced during this period, and sellers who had set their expectations to the 2023 property market encountered purchasers who simply couldn’t stretch to those figures, meaning transaction volumes fell, and prices adjusted downwards.”
He says confidence began to improve again in 2025 as inflation eased and mortgage rates began to stabilise, with buyer demand starting to return.
“However, this couldn’t be said for all of Kent, as Thanet, Ashford, and Tunbridge Wells all saw prices continue to dip,” he added.
“Areas that experienced the sharpest price growth during the pandemic boom, consequently saw the steepest correction. When values climb rapidly in a short space of time, they can overshoot what the local property market can sustainably support.”
Looking ahead, Elliot says the current confidence around inflation could change following the conflict in the Middle East as it might see banks hesitate to cut interest rates as quickly as previously anticipated.
He continued: “However large parts of Kent should see modest but steady house price growth. Some areas, such as Thanet, Ashford, and Tunbridge Wells, may take time to fully stabilise, but as buyer confidence returns, the market should continue to remain strong.”
