If you follow the national property news, 2026 sounds like a bad year to sell — but Northumberland is a different story. Rightmove reported the biggest drop in new asking prices for any August in eight years, the number of homes for sale is close to a twelve-year high, and around a third of listings have already had their price cut by an average of 7%. The phrase doing the rounds is "buyers' market". Across the Northumberland towns where Our Agents does most of its work — Morpeth, Alnwick, Hexham, Amble, Cramlington, Bedlington, Ponteland, Ashington and Blyth — that is not what we are seeing on the ground.
What the national headlines actually say
It is worth separating two different numbers. Asking prices — what sellers hope to get — have fallen: Rightmove cut its 2026 forecast for the national average to somewhere between 0% and -2%, and asking prices are around 1% below a year ago, the sharpest annual fall since late 2023. Agreed prices — what buyers and sellers actually shake hands on — have held up far better. Nationwide had UK values up 0.2% on the month and 1.6% over the year in early September 2026. The weakness is also very regional: London and the South East are down, while the North of England is still posting modest growth. The "buyers' market" is real, but it is largely a Southern one.
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Book a valuationWhat we are seeing across Northumberland
The clearest signal is our own buyer register. A growing number of the buyers registering with us have already sold, or are under offer, and are now waiting — chain-free and ready to proceed — for the right home to come to the market. They are not bargain-hunting on the back of national headlines; they are people who need to be in Morpeth for the schools, in Ponteland for the commute, on the coast at Amble, or back near family in Ashington or Blyth, and there simply is not enough of the right property for them to choose from.
That shows up at viewings. Well-prepared, realistically priced homes in these towns are still drawing strong viewing numbers and competing offers. Two recent Our Agents launches generated 53 viewings and 10 offers between them, and 95% of the homes we take to a managed open house sell at that event. None of that is consistent with a town full of hesitant buyers holding out for a discount.
A national average is made of hundreds of local markets pulling in different directions. Northumberland's most wanted towns are not moving the way the South is — and the sold-buyer demand behind that is real.
The towns where demand is holding
Morpeth — mainline station, strong catchment schools, a constant flow of Newcastle movers. Ponteland — the county's premium commuter town, where good family houses rarely sit. Alnwick — a compact historic market town with limited period stock and buyers who want exactly that. Hexham — the Tyne Valley's hub, tightly held and short of family homes. Amble — a coastal town that has found real momentum, drawing downsizers and second-steppers. Cramlington and Bedlington — well-priced south-east Northumberland with the reopened Northumberland Line now on the doorstep. Ashington and Blyth — the county's most affordable entry points, where first-time buyers and investors keep competition alive.
Our recent numbers
Against a 77-day national average, Our Agents is currently averaging 14 days to a sale agreed. Our listings attract around 85% more views than comparable homes on the portals. And the fixed cost of our complete selling package is £1,299. In a market where the national mood is cautious, getting a home in front of the right buyers quickly — and running a competitive process when the offers come — matters more, not less.
What this means if you are thinking of selling
The risk in 2026 is reading a national headline and either dropping your price before you have tested the market, or delaying a move you actually want to make. Neither is warranted in these towns. What the softer national backdrop does reward is getting the basics right: honest pricing based on local evidence, proper presentation and marketing, and an agent who will run a real process rather than just list and wait. The starting point is knowing what your home is genuinely worth to the buyers who are looking right now.
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