‘The Queen of the North’: The city where it took just 23 days to sell a house in 2025

Fantasy home shopping; a Scottish property renaissance, and Doris’s house from Gavin & Stacey in Barry hitting the market.

2025 might be swiftly drawing to a close, but a great many things happened in the world of property this year.

Dreaming of buying their own four walls, curious renters are still snooping at the homes they’d love to buy if money were no object, including a six-bedroom villa with 11 acres of land in the depths of Prestwick, which was the second most viewed property of 2025, according to Zoopla’s figures.

It’s also been a whirlwind year for Scotland, which is home to all of the top 10 fastest-moving markets, with spots in Falkirk, West Dunbartonshire, North Lanarkshire, and East Ayrshire taking just 13 days to sell on average.

Across England and Wales, though, the north reigns supreme, as Sunderland has been named the location with the fastest-moving property sales. Things might not be as swift as the likes of Falkirk, but the typical home took 23 days to shift this year – just over three weeks.

According to Zoopla’s end-of-year review, which summarises everything that’s been happening in the property world in 2025, our appetites are also getting more decadent, despite houses remaining relatively, well, pricey.

The top searched for words were garage, annexe, acres, and pool. Rural living is also increasingly appealing, as this also featured in the top terms, as well as freehold, HMO, and bungalow.

Zoopla also crunched the numbers on the most northern and southern property sales, too, as East House, a snug two-bed bungalow on the island of Unst, went for £85,000.

Meanwhile, at the polar opposite end of the country, a three-bed terraced house on St Mary’s in the Isles of Scilly piqued interest. It went up for an opulent £1,200,000, and had harbour views and a Grade II listed status.

But, when it comes to Sunderland, what’s the fuss all about?

Housing in Sunderland

Firstly, it’s safe to say that housing in Sunderland is much more affordable than in other parts of the UK.

According to data from Rightmove, the average property has sold for £180,744 in 2025, which is considerably under the going rate (currently £270,300). To be clear, that’s £89,556 worth of savings.

In the world of renting, things come in at an average of £692, as data from the Office for National Statistics shows. Now, doesn’t that feel a world away from the outrageous prices Londoners pay?

Things to do in Sunderland

Thinking about packing it all in and moving up north? Sunderland is a good place to be hungry. North does cracking seafood and was named in this year’s Good Food Guide, while Propa is spearheaded by Si King (one half of The Hairy Bikers), and does the sort of pies you’d want at your wedding.

Dickson’s also serves up local oddities by the dozen, including pink slices, pease puddings, and saveloy dips, which Ben Aitken, the author of the book Shitty Breaks, couldn’t stop dreaming about when he visited.

The Ship Isis dishes out pints of Sticky Toffee Porter by the bucketload, while The Canny Lad and Sam’s Bar are equally good places for a tipple.

As well as beer, another of Sunderland’s old industries was glass. At The National Glass Centre, tucked just beside the River Wear, young blowers can be seen turning molten glass into various objects.

Behind the Glass Centre is St Peter’s, an Anglo-Saxon monastery where, back in the late 600s, a clever clogs called the Venerable Bede wrote the pithily titled Historia ecclesiastica gentis Anglorum, a feat that earned him the title ‘The Father of English History.’

Sunderland – which is fondly known as the ‘Queen of the North’ – is also apt for exploring the great outdoors.

The sculpture trail is an integral part of the coast-to-coast route, and Herrington Country Park is home to various walking and cycling paths, as well as a lake with a model boat right in the middle.

Northumberland also features some of the most impressive beaches in the UK – and some of the cleanest waters, according to the city council.

This year, 12 spots along the coast were given an ‘excellent’ standard by the Environment Agency, including Bamburgh Castle, Seahouses North, Beadnell, and Low Newton, among others.

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