Norfolk Housing Market Shows New Confidence as Second Home Buyers Return
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While national headlines focus on uncertainty, the Norfolk housing market tells a very different story, with renewed confidence, strong sales, and a notable return of second home buyers driving positive momentum across the county.
The newspapers may be full of doom and gloom, with commentators feeding us a daily diet of pessimistic economic forecasts, but the truth is that here in Norfolk the housing market is getting along just fine.
Here at Arnolds Keys we actually sold more houses in April 2026 than we did in April 2025. That is people putting their money where their mouths are. There seems to be a positive mindset to just get on with it, perhaps because people have come to accept that political and economic uncertainty is a given, something that we are learning to live with.
One striking part of the market has been the return of second home buyers. The 2024 Budget, coupled with the decision to allow councils to charge double Council Tax on second homes, really did dent demand, with quite a few second homeowners opting to sell their properties. But 2026 has seen that part of the market return.
It is important to acknowledge that not everyone will be happy with this trend. There are legitimate claims that some communities have been ‘hollowed out’ by excessive second home ownership.
However, they also bring new money into those same communities; those second homeowners tend to spend in the local pub, the village shop, the neighbourhood restaurant – all amenities which are themselves endangered in many of our smaller communities. As ever, it is a question of balance – the reality is that tourism and visitors are the lifeblood of much of Norfolk.
So what is driving this return to the market? Partly it is that the extra costs imposed by Government decisions are now ‘priced in’. Alongside that, the soaring cost of travelling abroad thanks to the conflict in the Middle East (and uncertainty about whether such travel will even be possible if the war drags on), is fuelling a staycation boom.
Instability always drives the desire for security. The ability to visit somewhere like Norfolk on a regular basis without any of the uncertainties of travelling further afield is a big draw. And our county is one of the most attractive places to do this, helped along in no small measure by last month’s naming of Norwich as ‘The Best Place to Live in the UK’ by the Sunday Times.
Whether we like it or not, second home ownership is an important part of Norfolk’s economy and its housing market. Its resurgence is a sign not just of a desire to find somewhere safe to get away to, but also of a new-found confidence which defies the global news headlines. And that can only be good for all of us.
Sue Hall is coastal property specialist at Arnolds Keys’ Coastal Hub in Sheringham.
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