One London borough continues to rank as the most expensive place in the UK to buy or rent a home, while rents and prices in Scotland offer a far more affordable proposition.
This is according to a retrospective on the past year published by online property platform Zoopla, which also found that the most-viewed properties of 2025 included a rural three-bed detached home in Pencander, Wales and a six-bed villa in Prestwick, Scotland with amenities such as a swimming pool and steam room.
The fastest-moving property markets in the UK are generally based in Scotland, where the average time to sell was 38 days in 2025. In Falkirk, West Dunbartonshire, North Lanarkshire, and East Ayrshire, the average time to sell a property was just 13 days.
The speed sale of properties in Scotland can be attributed to the fact that properties listed for sale in the region already have a valuation and survey, making it far easier to progress a sale once a buyer makes their choice.
Looking at the keywords of what buyers in the UK were searching for in their home, the top-ranking feature was a garage, followed by an annexe. Pools also ranked highly as an attractive feature, and buyers also often searched specifically for homes with “rural” and “freehold” as keywords.
Most and least expensive places to buy
The most expensive local authority in the UK buy a home in remains the London borough of Kensington and Chelsea, which boasts an average house price of £1,071,600.
Inverclyde, the cheapest local authority in the UK according to Zoopla’s data, features an average house price around ten-times less at £109,400.
The top five most expensive local authorities in the UK are all in London, and when looking outside the capital, areas surrounding the city in the South of England rank particularly highly.
Elmbridge in Surrey is the most expensive area outside of London with an average house prices of £705,800, followed by South Buckinghamshire with an average house price of £671,400.
The table below shows the five most and least expensive UK local authorities in which to buy a home.
| Position | Most expensive | Average home price | Least expensive | Average home price |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kensington and Chelsea | £1,071,600 | Inverclyde | £109,400 |
| 2 | City of Westminster | £914,600 | East Ayrshire | £112,100 |
| 3 | Richmond upon Thames | £750,200 | Kingston upon Hull | £115,700 |
| 4 | Camden | £749,400 | West Dunbartonshire | £117,200 |
| 5 | Hammersmith and Fulham | £709,800 | Hartlepool | £117,300 |
Most and least expensive places to rent
The most expensive places to rent track closely with the house price data. Kensington and Chelsea once again tops the list with an average monthly rental of £3,531 – more than 2.5-times the UK average of £1,318.
Scotland and the North East generally feature the cheapest places to rent, with Hartlepool posting an average rent of £578 per month.
The town was closely followed by the Scottish towns of East Ayrshire and Dumfries and Galloway.
The table below shows the five most and least expensive UK local authorities in which to rent a home.
| Position | Most expensive | Average monthly rent | Least expensive | Average monthly rent |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kensington and Chelsea | £3,531 | Hartlepool | £578 |
| 2 | City of Westminster | £3,282 | East Ayrshire | £602 |
| 3 | Camden | £2,802 | Dumfries and Galloway | £615 |
| 4 | Hammersmith and Fulham | £2,739 | County Durham | £632 |
| 5 | Islington | £2,560 | Redcar and Cleveland | £634 |
Steady year ahead expected
Zoopla said that the end of 2025 was characterised by uncertainty over the Autumn Budget, with many speculating over the effects of possible property tax.
Now, with clarity on the introduction of a ‘mansion tax’ on properties over £2,000,000, the company expects to see the market’s momentum boost upwards in the beginning of 2026.
Zoopla said it expects a steady year ahead with sales remaining around 1.15 million, consistent with this past year.
It said that first-time buyers should prioritise understanding their affordability and that mortgage lending would likely stay competitive.
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