Does the North-South divide still exist in the UK housing market?

What do the most expensive parts of the country reveal about shifting demand? And why is the Manchester housing market now outperforming many southern counterparts? In this episode of the Barclays Mortgage Insider Podcast, host Phil Spencer is joined by Lucian Cook, Head of Research at Savills, and Ross Jones, founder of Home Financial and Evolve Commercial Finance, to explore how regional trends are redefining the UK housing, mortgage and buy-to-let markets. They take a closer look at London house prices and the ripple effect they’re creating across commuter zones. The conversation also turns to the Scotland housing market, which is showing late-cycle strength in key urban centres, and the Wales housing market, where contrasting conditions range from second-home hotspots to areas still grappling with post-industrial decline. They also unpack what the increased professionalisation of buy-to-let means for brokers, and how factors like yield, transport connectivity and tenant demographics are shaping smarter investment strategies. This episode is packed with insights on how shifting geography, affordability and yield are influencing buyer behaviour and why local knowledge is fast becoming a broker’s greatest asset.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.