New research tracks the most active or ‘hottest’ areas of the country
Bradford was the leading property hotspot in the country in the first quarter of the year, according to our data. The property portal’s latest Hotspots Index reveals that Bradford retained the top spot for a second consecutive quarter, while also topping the table in the January-March and April-June indexes in 2024. It was only in the last three months of 2024 when Newcastle, currently 6th in the table, usurped Bradford as the hottest local market.
The Hotspots Index looks at the number of available sales properties, comparing that against the volume of onsite activity, creating a score that represents the intensity of interest in that area.
Barnsley and Stoke-on-Trent were new entrants to the top ten, jumping to 8th place from 13th and 10th from 17th respectively in October-December 2024. Meanwhile, Derby and Blackburn moved the other way, dropping out of the top ten completely to 15th and 24th place respectively in January-March.
January-March 2025 hotspots UK top 10
| Town/city | Current ranking | Previous ranking (Q4 2024) |
| Bradford | 1 | 1 |
| Sunderland | 2 | 4 |
| Burnley | 3 | 2 |
| Wigan | 4 | 5 |
| Leicester | 5 | 3 |
| Newcastle | 6 | 9 |
| Liverpool | 7 | 6 |
| Barnsley | 8 | 13 |
| Coventry | 9 | 8 |
| Stoke-on-Trent | 10 | 17 |
The North/south divide appears to hold firm, with the top of the list dominated by some of the most vibrant and cheapest locations in the north where there is the most heat in terms of housing market activity. Conversely, at the foot of the table the southern seaside towns are to be found, such as Brighton, Worthing and Bournemouth. The coolest hotspot once again was Southend-on-Sea which has maintained its position at the bottom of the table for the past year.
Jason Tebb, president of the OnTheMarket, says:
“Affordability continues to be a concern for many, even following two base-rate reductions in the second half of last year and a further quarter-point cut in February. It is perhaps not surprising that buyers are seeking out better-value locations where their money will go further. Despite strong wage growth, average property values have also increased, making it difficult for many to bridge the gap.
“It will be interesting to see whether the drive by employers to encourage more workers to return to the office will have an impact on activity in more remote locations where a longer commute is acceptable as long as it doesn’t have to be undertaken every day.”
Other notable big movers in the index are Luton, which climbed from 21st in Q4 to 14th in Q1, displacing Middlesborough, which fell the other way from 14th to 21st. Crawley jumped from 29th to 20th, while Gloucester climbed from 40th to 28th place as activity heated up.
In the London boroughs there was less fluctuation than nationally with the top two spots held by the City of London and Barking and Dagenham for successive quarters. Meanwhile, Newham dropped out of the top ten (3rd in October-December 2024, now 14th), as did Hounslow (10th in the last three months of 2024, now in 11th place). New entrants to the top ten in January-March were Harrow (11th in the period from October-December 2024) and Waltham Forest (14th last year).
January-March 2025 hotspots London top 10
| Location | Current ranking | Previous ranking (Q4 2024) |
| City of London | 1 | 1 |
| Barking and Dagenham | 2 | 2 |
| Havering | 3 | 4 |
| Bexley | 4 | 7 |
| Redbridge | 5 | 5 |
| Sutton | 6 | 8 |
| Enfield | 7 | 6 |
| Waltham Forest | 8 | 14 |
| Harrow | 9 | 11 |
| Hillingdon | 10 | 9 |
Find out more about the property market in your area and take a look at the properties available by visiting OnTheMarket.com
Methodology:
The OnTheMarket Hotspots ranking data is calculated by looking at the number of available sales properties within a certain area and comparing that against the volume of onsite activity over the same period to create a score that is representative of the intensity of interest in that market.
Areas are ranked by this score and this score is compared across different time periods to show how the “heat” of the market is changing over time.
