Gloucester Property Market Review 2025 and What’s in Store for 2026

The property market certainly slowed in the last couple of months of 2025. Fuelled by rumours of tax changes ahead of the Autumn budget, many people put their home moving plans on hold but with the budget proving to be plenty of smoke with very little fire, what was the overall picture for 2025. 

 

Across the UK average new seller asking prices fell by 1.8% (-£6,695) in December to £358,138. This larger than usual December drop means that prices ended 0.6% (-£2,059) lower at the end of 2025 than in 2024. The average asking prices of property in Gloucestershire stands at £391,525 which is 0.3% down on the same time a year ago. Gloucester prices bucked the national trend with an annual increase of 2.3% ending the year at £298,189. 

 

2025 saw 2130 Gloucester properties reduce their original asking price with the higher percentage being in the second half of the year. 

 

Looking ahead, the improved buyer affordability suggests the start to 2026 is more likely to resemble the first half of 2025 with some predicting that new seller asking prices will rise by 2%. 

With buyer choice remaining high, sellers will still need to come to the market at tempting prices to attract attention and do all that they can to ensure that their property is presented as well as possible. 

 

 

The uncertainty and gloom caused by rumours of property tax rises in November’s Budget from as early as August contributed to more subdued activity in the second half of the year. 

 

The number of new sellers coming to market in the first half of 2025 was 9% ahead of the first half of 2024, which reversed to 4% below 2024 across the second half of last year. 

 

Overall, this resulted in there being 980 properties available for sale across GL1, 2, 3 and 4 as of 31st December 2025, compared to 791 a year earlier. 

 

Of these 980 properties, 672 had been on the market for at least 8 weeks with 537 of those on for 12 weeks or more. 

 

 

Sales volumes in 2025 followed a similar pattern with levels 3% ahead of 2024 in the first half of the year, but 6% behind in the second half. 

 

Overall, however, it was a more positive year for sales, with the number of sales agreed 3% higher than in 2024. 

 

In Gloucester there were 3104 sales agreed across the year with 1748 of these agreed in the first half of 2025. 

 

The average time taken to secure a buyer across the South-West stands at 77 days (71 in 2024), an indication of the slower market in the second half of 2025. Here in Gloucester the average is 58 days (49 in 2024), keeping the city within the top 10 of the fastest selling of England’s largest cities. 

 

 

The year ended with the Bank of England reducing the base rate of interest by a further 0.25% to 3.75%. This will provide plenty of confidence although it is unlikely that it will cause much movement in mortgage rates. The markets were very much expecting December’s cut to go ahead, and lenders had shown their hand early, already cutting rates and competing to secure end-of-year business. The average two-year fixed rate is now 4.33% compared to 5.08% last year. 

 

Home-movers will be entering 2026 looking at cheaper average mortgage rates than they were at the beginning of 2025. For those who also had an end-of-year pay rise, will see their affordability improved further and many home-movers will also see that the amount that they can borrow has increased, as lenders have been rolling out the Loan-To-Income and stress rate changes that were permitted by the regulator earlier in 2025. 

 

If your mortgage deal is coming to an end in the next 6 months or you are looking to move home then now is the time to speak to an independent financial advisor who can explore the options available to you 

 

 

With market conditions supporting higher levels of activity, and hopefully a more certain economic environment, we forecast a better year for price growth in 2026 with a strong rebound in activity to kick start the year. 

 

For sellers, it is important to choose your agent wisely. Some agents are stock piling properties and having large numbers on their books will result in your property being just another amongst a huge list of available properties they are trying to sell. Agents with lower stock levels will be able to dedicate the time to pro-actively push your property as it may be the only one of its type, they have available. They will almost certainly offer a more personal service alongside. 

 

For buyers, search wisely. Do not overly limit your search. Use just your absolute minimum requirements and widen your price range to take in those properties that have been overpriced and been hanging around for a long time unsold. Consider extending your search area as a property that currently falls a fraction out of your location search may be the perfect home but not being shown to you by your chosen portal. It may be worth travelling an extra mile for that dream home. 

 

 

As always if you are considering moving home or looking to get on the property ladder in 2026 then correct planning is vital and it is important to seek the right advice early on. 

 

Have you had your property valued by three different estate agents and looked at their reviews. How many properties do they have unsold? 

 

Have you spoken to an independent financial advisor to check what you can afford and what you can do to improve your approval chances? 

 

Have you spoken to a solicitor to make sure your property is sale ready? 

 

If you have any questions or require any assistance then please get in touch by calling 01452 260993, emailing enquiries@rbwalters.co.uk or dropping us a message.