The latest figures from our August Housing Market Review suggest that the Blackpool property market is continuing to show resilience, with our own transactional data indicating stronger house price growth than both the national and regional averages.

In fact, for one of the first times I can remember, the local picture is showing Blackpool outperforming both the national and North West markets.

That doesn’t mean we should ignore the national figures. They provide important context and help us understand the direction of the wider market. But, particularly in a market such as Blackpool, local transactional data can tell a very different story.

As I often say:

“National headlines tell you about what is happening in the UK. Local data tells us what is happening locally in your market.”

Nationally, house price growth is currently around 0.9%, while the North West is recording growth of approximately 3.1%.

Our own Tiger transactional data tells a different story.

The average property sold through Tiger in August was £150,000, compared with £144,000 in July.

That’s a 3.4% increase in a single month, equivalent to approximately £6,000 on the average property.

More importantly, the August average was 5.7% higher than the same month last year, when our average sale price was £141,000.

It is important to stress that this is our own transactional data rather than an official Blackpool-wide house price index. However, it gives us a valuable insight into the properties actually being sold through our business and the prices being achieved.

There were 727 new sales instructions across the FY postcodes during August, with 85% agreeing a sale – equivalent to around 618 properties.

August was quieter than July in terms of new properties coming to market, with 106 fewer new instructions.

However, the reduction in supply did not translate into weaker sales activity.

In fact, we agreed 10% more sales in August than we did in July.

That is an important indicator.

It suggests that, despite fewer properties coming to market, there remains a good level of demand from buyers who are actively looking to purchase.

The market isn’t necessarily behaving in the way that some of the national headlines might suggest.

I still believe we are operating in a market where buyers have more choice and greater negotiating power than they did during the exceptionally strong markets of previous years.

But that doesn’t mean that properties aren’t selling.

Our August figures demonstrate that correctly priced properties, presented well and marketed properly, can continue to attract buyers and achieve a sale.

For sellers, the key remains realistic pricing from the outset.

Overpricing a property in the hope of testing the market can result in fewer viewings, longer marketing periods and ultimately having to reduce the asking price later.

The strongest strategy is to understand what comparable properties are actually achieving locally and price accordingly.

The rental market continues to demonstrate significant demand.

During August, 345 properties were listed to let, with 281 lets agreed.

The average rent was £714 per calendar month, representing rental growth of 6.8% year-on-year.

There are several factors contributing to this.

Rental supply remains constrained, with some landlords choosing to leave the sector because of increasing regulation, rising costs and the changing requirements of the private rented sector.

At the same time, rental demand remains strong.

For some households, accessing social housing remains difficult, while others are finding it increasingly challenging to get onto the property ladder.

That combination of constrained supply and strong demand is continuing to put upward pressure on rents.

For landlords, however, rental growth needs to be considered alongside the wider cost and regulatory environment. Higher rents alone do not tell the whole investment story.

This is where I think the local picture becomes particularly interesting.

Blackpool remains one of the most affordable places in the country to buy property.

That affordability, combined with continued rental demand and the potential for further regeneration, makes the market worth watching closely.

There are also longer-term ambitions around improving employment opportunities, tackling antisocial behaviour and continuing the regeneration of the town.

Blackpool’s ambition to become UK City of Culture 2029 is another part of the wider story.

None of these factors provide guarantees about future property values, but they are important considerations when looking at the long-term prospects of a market.

For me, the question isn’t simply:

“Is Blackpool affordable today?”

The more interesting question is:

“Will Blackpool still be this affordable in five or ten years’ time?”

If the town continues to see investment, regeneration, employment growth and sustained rental demand, there is a compelling argument for considering what that could mean for property values over the longer term.

One of the biggest lessons from August is that property markets aren’t uniform.

A national house price figure is useful, but it doesn’t tell you what is happening on a particular street, in a particular town or even between different property types within the same town.

That is why we continue to monitor our own transactional data alongside the national and regional indices.

At Tiger, we can see what properties are coming to market, how many are attracting buyers, what prices are being agreed and what is happening within the rental market.

And right now, our data is showing a Blackpool market that remains active and, on our measures, is performing strongly.

National headlines tell you about what is happening in the UK. Local data tells us what is happening locally in your market.

As we move into the autumn market, it will be interesting to see whether this momentum continues and whether the combination of resilient demand and constrained supply begins to put further upward pressure on prices.