‘Rural’ and ‘remote’ is the new dream location

The new norms around social distancing are beginning to influence the type of locations people are
seeking when looking for a property.

In last week’s blog, we explored the results of our poll question around whether the pandemic has
made people want to move house, and this week, we’re looking at where people really want to live.

A staggering 48% of the 25,000 respondents we polled said they’d now prefer to live in a rural
location, with some even describing their ideal location as ‘remote’.

This was closely followed by the suburbs (30%), but interestingly, of those who still want to be based
closer to the action, more people would now choose to live in a city (14%) than a town (8%).

So are we likely to see a mass exodus into the countryside? It’s certainly possible. In August,
Rightmove reported an influx in property searches in village locations, citing more outdoor space as
the key factor driving increased demand for rural properties since the pandemic.

Their research revealed that city dwellers in London are setting their sights on Iver in
Buckinghamshire, while Manchester residents are enquiring about Charlesworth in Derbyshire and
Birmingham residents are looking to move to Marlbrook in Worcestershire.

Those in Bristol are exploring Banwell in Somerset, Liverpool residents are looking to move to
Aughton in Lancashire, and Edinburgh dwellers would rather live in West Linton in Peeblesshire.

It will be interesting to see whether this trend continues over the coming year, particularly with the
limited properties available in many rural villages. Tune in to next week’s blog for more!