The UK's 16 best market towns revealed by property experts: They’re Britain’s most sought-after postcodes. Here’s how to buy in one for just £191,000 - and the hidden gem just an hour from London By Fred Redwood Updated: 07:22 EDT, 22 August 2024 e-mail 8 View comments Most high streets these days are a sad mix of vape shops, Costas and probably a betting shop or two. So, where do you move to if you want a strong community, welcoming coffee shops and vibrant atmosphere all within walking distance? The answer is a market town.
With their gravel-voiced traders, colourful open-air stalls and milling crowds, market towns are now some of the most sought-after postcodes in the country. From a tiny town in Wales with an average house price of just £191,000 to a foodie hotspot in Shropshire and an eccentric community in Devon, we’ve consulted property experts and estate agents across the country to bring you a list of Britain’s best market towns. Market Harborough, Leicestershire St Dionysius Church in Market Harborough, which has a six-day-a-week market One of the luxurious four bedrooms in a mock-Georgian house on Leicester Road which is available for £664,995 Average sold price last year: £351,000 Located in the heart of the beautiful Leicestershire countryside in between Kibworth and Wistow, Market Harborough has a six-day-a-week market which is a cut above.
Being indoors and protected from the elements, the stalls are like well-presented shop windows, especially John Ross, the butcher, and Sue’s cheese stall. Other more off-beat traders include a handbag and scarf specialist and a craftsman offering antique clock repairs, to say nothing of the personalised chocolate slabs being sold at Squish Delight. Every Autumn, the Arts Fresco transforms the town centre into the biggest street arts festival in the Midlands.
Market Harborough, with a population of around 24,000, also has superb shopping, including the trendy No 34 Boutique and the impressive Bagel&Griff for homeware and decor. Joy Brankin-Frisby is the typical home buyer in Market Harborough. She left the market town in her early twenties to live in the south and returned a few years later with a husband in tow.
‘It’s such a hidden, secret place,’ she says. ‘It’s ideal for young families, with good schools, a traditional community and proper countryside nearby. Yet it’s under an hour for my husband to commute to London by train.
’ On the market: Davidsons Homes is selling a new mock-Georgian four bedroom home on Leicester Road for £664,995 (pdavidsonsgroup.co.uk).
Moreton-in-Marsh, Cotswolds Moreton-in-Marsh is more than just your average picture-perfect Cotswold town, boasting a Tuesday market with stalls selling leather goods, purses and books amongst other items The Grade II Listed Ruskin House, which has three bedrooms and is on the market for £850,000 Average sold price last year: £614,000 Do not imagine that Moreton-in-Marsh is just another picture-perfect Cotswold town. ‘It’s more than that,’ says estate agent Tim Hayman-Joyce. ‘It’s a proper working community with excellent year-round amenities, not a tourist trap for day trippers.
’ You only have to visit the Tuesday market on the High Street to appreciate the buzz of this market town. It is the largest street market in the Cotswolds with stalls selling everything from leather goods, purses and books to fish and pet products. The shops, too, are a treat, including the excellent local butcher R&D Walker, The Cotswold Cheese Company and the Toy Shop.
The countryside around Moreton is beautiful, most notably the 56-acre Batsford Arboretum, the largest private collection of trees and shrubs in the country. As both Birmingham and London are about 90 minutes away by train, many of the home buyers are commuters. They have their eyes on the Georgian listed properties in Church Street and the homes in the hospital road on the edge of town with its splendid views over open countryside.
On the market: Hayman Joyce is selling the Grade II Listed Ruskin House , a three bedroom period house on the High Street for £850,000 (haymanjoyce.co.uk).
Ludlow, Shropshire Average sold price last year: £282,000 Ludlow has a Michelin-starred restaurant and a wealth of artisan food shops, including independent bakeries, butchers, greengrocers and a brewery 3, Quality Square is a Grade II Listed townhouse in the centre of Ludlow which is available for £275,000 Ludlow has for long been the foodie capital of the shires. What other provincial town boasts a Michelin-starred restaurant and a wealth of artisan food shops, including independent bakeries, butchers, greengrocers and a brewery? The flagship of the town’s gastronomic identity is its traditional open-air market, which takes place every Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday. Traders here sell everything from local goats’ cheese and hand-made butter to duck eggs and smoked fish.
Yet there’s more to Ludlow than good grub. ‘Buyers often say that it offers the perfect balance of a rural yet cosmopolitan lifestyle,’ says Joe Martin of Strutt and Parker. ‘It’s a pretty market town with open countryside right on your doorstep.
’ Ludlow, which has a population of around 11,000, has an artsy vibe going on too – there are regular festivals for music and literature. With some 500 listed buildings, the most desirable period homes are the townhouses and cottages on Mill Street, Broad Street and Bell Lane. ‘But you can also find period gems in the centre of town,’ says Martin.
Buy it: Strutt and Parker is selling 3, Quality Square, a Grade II Listed townhouse in central Ludlow for £275,000 (struttandparker.com). Skipton, Yorkshire Skipton has a market which operates four days a week and offers products including arts and crafts as well as Yorkshire-made blankets The Sandringham, a four bedroom home on the Clifford Gardens Development is on the market for £549,995 Average sold price last year: £274,000 Skipton is indelibly ‘Yorkshire’ in every respect.
It’s fitting that the most Yorkshire of Yorkshiremen, Fred Trueman the cricketer, lived just a short car journey away in the Dales. If you want to see Yorkshire culture, warmth and humour in all its pomp just visit Skipton market. Four days a week, traders arrive in the town centre and set up stalls along each side of the wide high street.
They bring with them everything from cheeses to scarves, local meat to arts and crafts, shoes and boots to Yorkshire-made blankets. Each day varies but there is a rotating set of smooth-talking traders, meaning no day is quite the same. It’s a lively town in other respects too.
Arts events take place in Craven Arts House, comedy, plays and gigs at the Mart Theatre, tea dances in the town hall. The shops are a treat, such as Stanforth Butchers, famed for their pork pies and George Wilson the fish man. As for socialising, try Alexander’s cafe and bar with its heated terraces and views over the Leeds and Liverpool canal, while The Curious Fox restaurant is renowned for its steak.
There’s nowt Yorkshire locals value more than a good education and the single-sex selective schools – Ermysted’s Boys’ Grammar and Skipton Girls’ High – draw a lot of parents to the area, as do the five good primary schools. On the market: Bellway Homes is selling The Sandringham , a four bedroom home on the Clifford Gardens Development for £549,995 (bellway.co.
uk). Alresford, Hampshire The most sought-after streets in Alresford are all found near to its market, which operates on Thursdays The cosy living room of a two bedroom end-of-terrace house which is available for £540,000 Average sold price last year: £488,000 The bijou Georgian town of Alresford takes its Thursday markets seriously. Traders sell everything from mobile phone accessories to award-winning bread, cakes and eggs.
There is a book shop and stalls selling organic foods, olive oils, logs from a local supplier and even cycle repairs. One old favourite is Derek Price who grows his own herbs, flowers and vegetables. The trust which runs the market is looking to expand and it would be an ideal opportunity to get a foot on the ladder of commerce.
A single bay stall only costs £15 a week – worth it to sample a breakfast from Sarah Kendall’s refreshment van and to get to know the locals. The most sought-after Alresford streets are all found near to the market. ‘Retirees downsize from the Hampshire villages to be within walking distance of the amenities,’ says Sophie Winterson of Hamptons.
‘They favour the High Street, East Street and West Street.’ There is much else to enjoy in Alresford, including lovely pubs, restaurants and coffee houses. The ladies of the Middleton family (yes, that one) have been seen in the exclusive high-end fashion boutique, Moda Rosa.
In terms of culture, music, opera and ballet performances are held nearby at The Grange Festival. The little ones (and not so little) are always entranced by a steam engine ride on the Watercress Line, a ten-mile track through the Hampshire countryside to Alton. On the market: Charters is selling a two bedroom end-of-terrace house in the heart of Alresford for £540,000.
Totnes, Devon The main shopping drag at Fore Street in Totnes which boasts a green café, an ethical organic health store, an aromatherapy centre, perfumery, and an artisan coffee shop A contemporary four bedroom detached house with a large garden in the area is on the market for £950,000 A verage sold price last year: £434,000 For years now Totnes has gained a reputation for free-thinking, bordering on eccentricity. It even tried to set up its own currency. Walk down the main shopping street – Fore Street – and you’ll find a green café, an ethical organic health store, an aromatherapy centre, perfumery, and an artisan coffee shop.
Almost every form of enterprise is retro, locally sourced or both. A Costa coffee chain tried to open in Totnes and there were ructions. ‘It’s the social mix of incomers from London and the hippy-ish locals that gives the town its distinctive flavour,’ says former resident Rebecca Martin.
‘So you’ll see people wearing £300 trainers alongside barefoot hippies and they get along just fine.’ It certainly makes for interesting encounters. The markets, held in the Civic Square every Friday and Saturday, are at the heart of Totnes community life: the locals bring honey, cakes, clothes, plants, antiques and all sorts of other home-produced goodies to sell.
The Edwardian townhouses in Bridgetown and Jubilee Road are the most sought-after in town. The new-ish Baltic Way overlooking the River Dart is also popular. On the market: Marchand Petit are selling a four bedroom detached contemporary home on Jubilee Road for £950,000.
Berwick-upon-Tweed, Northumberland Two of Berwick's three iconic bridges spanning the picturesque Tweed river Average sold price last year: £228,000 Berwick, the most northerly town in Northumberland, has been a favourite beauty spot with northern folk for many years. Now, it is attracting admirers from further away. ‘After Covid a growing number of people sought to move to the countryside,’ says Charlie Maling-Dun of Northumberland Properties.
‘But favourite places like the west country have sky-high prices now so they are buying here instead.’ Certainly, Berwick with its three iconic bridges, beaches, harbour and views towards Holy Island, can match anywhere in the south for natural beauty. Take a walk along the mile-long Elizabethan town walls, then cross the River Tweed to Spittal beach, a typical Victorian seaside resort with a promenade and lighthouse, to see what is drawing people here.
Berwick, with a population of 26,000, offers an eclectic shopping experience with several antique, music and second-hand book shops. Many of the independent boutiques sell one-of-a-kind items that make shopping here that little bit special. A street market is held in Marygate on Wednesdays and Saturdays.
There are also specialist markets throughout the year, including the Dickensian market at Christmas, which is quite a spectacle. Favourite areas include Spittal. On the market: Ravensdowne and Castle Terrace.
Paton & Co is selling The Barns at Heathery Tops Farm , a two bed semi-detached, barn conversion for £350,000 (patonandco.com). Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk St Edmundsbury Cathedral in Bury St Edmunds, which holds its street market on Wednesdays and Saturdays A three bedroom semi-detached home on Philip Road could be yours for £500,000 Average sold price last year: £337,000 There is something of the Dickensian film set feel to Bury St Edmunds, with its Georgian squares and ancient lanes.
The traditional street market, held on Wednesdays and Saturdays, is one of the most successful in the country. Dating back to before the days of William the Conqueror, it has stalls selling fruit, vegetables, meat and fish, trading alongside others selling authentic Italian shirts, Portuguese pottery and vintage clothes. It’s just the place to pass a few hours before checking out the town’s restaurants, such as Pea Porridge, a highly-regarded independent set in a 19th-century former bakery.
With a population of around 35,000, Bury is a good place for young people too. The schools are generally superb: The Priory School and Sebert Wood Primary have both been judged ‘outstanding’ by Ofsted. There are music gigs aplenty and various festivals, including a ‘nearly’ festival for tribute act.
There is the Theatre Royal, the UK’s only remaining Regency playhouse, for entertainment or the equally adorable Abberygate, an independent cinema dating back to the 1920s. The nearby Suffolk countryside is lovely, as are the charming historic villages of Lavenham and Long Melford. On the market: Oakheart Property is selling a three bedroom semi-detached home on Philip Road for £500,000 (oakheartproperty.
co.uk). Ramsbottom, Lancashire Ramsbottom hosts the Black Pudding Throwing world championships every September A four bedroom semi-detached in Linden Avenue is available for £475,000 Average sold price last year: £283,000 Wanting to live in a market town that has socialising and entertainment as part of the package? You could hardly choose better than Ramsbottom.
The Black Pudding Throwing world championships are held here every September, while a 1940s-themed festival which involves everyone dressing like extras from an episode of Foyles War takes place over a weekend in May. The East Lancs Railway is behind much of this fun and frivolity. With a 12-mile track and seven stations joining Ramsbottom to Heywood, its Santa Special is not to be missed.
The market, held in the Bridge Street car park every Saturday, is popular, selling fruit, fish and vegetables and there are also regular farmers’ markets. This is a town for the serious foodies and tears are still being shed over the closure of Levanter, a popular Spanish restaurant. The locals often settle for authentic Lancashire-style fair such as the excellent pie and a pint at The Irwell Works Brewery.
(You’ll search in vain for a Wetherspoons on this town.) Culturally, Ramsbottom has a lot going on. The local am-dram group, the Summerseat Players, based at The Theatre Royal, has been going for over fifty years.
It is a great place to bring up a young family too: three primary schools are judged ‘outstanding’ by Ofsted and children living to the north of the town have the chance of going to the successful Rawtenstall Grammar, in Rossendale. On the market: Miller Metcalfe is selling a four bedroom semi-detached in Linden Avenue for £475,000 (millermetcalfe.co.
uk). Stamford, Lincolnshire Up and coming Stamford has an interesting mix of independent shops, including a good book shop, Walker Books, as well as antique shops and a hardware store Afour bedroom character property in Queen Street is on the market for for £600,000 Average sold price last year: £393,000 Artsy and elegant with just a touch of boho chic, Stamford is a market town on the up. Drop into Woolfox, the new wellness-focused private members’ club and golf club outside town or sample the coffee in a Scandi-style cafe to get a taste of where it's headed.
There is an interesting mix of independent shops, including a good book shop, Walker Books, as well as antique shops and a hardware store. Stamford Contemporary Art, in the centre of the town, is a gallery offering painting and drawing classes. The thriving market is held every Friday on Broad Street and Ironmonger Street and currently has about 90 traders, regular and casual.
There is also a fortnightly farmers’ market. With a population of around 21,000, Stamford is a good place for families. Most of the primary schools are rated ‘good’ by Ofsted and Great Casterton CofE has been judged ‘outstanding’.
Both the state secondaries are ‘good’. There are lots of sports clubs for young people to join and for those who lean towards the arts, Stamford Arts Centre has a theatre, cinema and art gallery and the Corn Exchange has a varied programme of music, drama and comedy. Barn Hill has the most expensive houses but the centre is laden with architectural gems.
On the market: Nest Estates is selling a four bedroom character property in Queen Street for £600,000 (nesestates.co.uk).
South Molton, Devon The community market in South Molton was judged as being the best in the country and locals gather there on Thursdays and Saturdays A six bedroom semi-detached late Victorian villa could be yours for £650,000 Average sold price last year: £274,000 Sometimes a market is more than just a market – and that is the case with South Molton. Judged the Best Community Market in Great Britain, this is where everybody meets on Thursdays and Saturdays to chat, shoot the breeze and go in search of bargains. ‘It’s a real community hub,’ says Chloe Campbell at Greenslade Taylor Hunt property and auction specialists.
‘It’s a great place for newcomers to find their feet socially in the town.’ The rest of South Molton is pretty special too. It has a wealth of historic buildings with some fine examples of Medieval, Elizabethan and Georgian architecture and the locals work hard at maintaining their gardens and green spaces.
South Molton became Britain in Bloom South West Gold Winners in 2022. There are plenty of good, ‘proper’ pubs, notably The Coaching Inn, which is over 300 years old. For those with more exotic tastes, Zest has a Mediterranean flavour and The Corn Dolly Tea Shop does what it says on the tin.
Yet the main attraction for buyers is that South Molton is away from the main tourist drag. ‘People move here because they like the lifestyle,’ says Campbell. ‘It’s close to the big beaches of North Devon but it’s not in the least touristy.
’ On the market: Stags is selling a six bedroom semi-detached late Victorian villa for £650,000 (stags.co.uk).
Machynlleth, Powys Machynlleth has a population of just 2,200 and is best known for its three-day comedy festival which has top names such as Aisling Bea, Jon Richardson, Stewart Lee and Josh Widdicombe A four bedroom terraced house in Railway Terrace is available for just £195,000 Average sold price last year: £191,000 If your idea of a mid-Wales town is of a somewhat dour, straight-laced settlement surrounded by mountains then you will be surprised by Machynlleth. A little bit arty, a tad eco-green, with a dash of quaintness, the market town, with a population of just 2,200, is nowadays best known for its three-day comedy festival. One of the major events on the comedy circuit, it attracts thousands of visitors to the town and features top names such as Aisling Bea, Jon Richardson, Stewart Lee and Josh Widdicombe.
Sustainable living and a love of nature is taken seriously here too. This is where the Centre for Alternative Technology was established in the 1970s in an old slate quarry. Today ‘twitchers’ love to spy migrating ospreys returning to the Cors Dyfi nature reserve.
Sustainability initiatives can be seen all over town, from seedling swaps to clothing repairs. Locals are encouraged to ‘pick your own herbs’ in the local car park. The weekly market has a friendly, community feel.
Sited under the gaze of the Victorian clock tower, you can buy everything here from pet food and vacuum cleaner spares to books, beads, organic fruit and speciality cheeses. Elsewhere in town, there’s a range of independent book shops, junk shops and antique dealers. In terms of culture, the Museum of Modern Art (Moma) is a major attraction.
Housed in a converted chapel, it includes seven galleries and a concert venue for Machynlleth Festival events including recitals for children and jazz concerts. On the market: Morris, Marshall and Poole are selling a four bedroom terraced house in Railway Terrace for £195,000 (morrismarshall.co.
uk). Cowbridge, Vale of Glamorgan Cowbridge boasts farmer’s markets, fairs and foodie festivals, with Cardiff also just a 20-minute drive away A four bedroom apartment in The Old Grammar School could be yours for £599,950 Average sold price last year: £499,000 Many of the towns in south Wales show the scars of post-industrial decline – but the market town of Cowbridge is a place apart. Rural and pretty, the town has some of the most expensive streets in the region.
Demand is strong here – just last week a house sold for £51,000 above its asking price. ‘Wealthy retired people buy here for the excellent shops,’ says Matthew Jones of Watts and Morgan. ‘For young families, the schools are an enticement.
’ Cowbridge is essentially a long Roman street laden with high-end boutique shops, ranging from arts and antiques to house and garden and hairdressing. There is a tapas bar and a bistro and several good pubs, most notably The Bear Hotel where Tom Jones has been known to stop for a pint when he’s in town. The singer once owned an estate nearby at Pendoylan.
With farmer’s markets, fairs and foodie festivals, if you can’t find what you want here then Cardiff is just a 20-minute drive away. The Heritage Coast, with its dramatic grey cliffs and pebble beaches, is nearby and the glorious Gower Peninsular is under an hour. Although popular with the elderly (there are three branches of Probus, the club for retired business people) this is also a great place to bring up children.
The recently revamped Cowbridge Comprehensive has been named the best secondary school in Wales. There is plenty of house building going on. Taylor Wimpey has a 400-home development to the north of the town centre; plans are going ahead for apartments in a former pub on the High Street.
On the market: Watts and Morgan are selling a four bedroom apartment in The Old Grammar School for £599,950 (wattsandmorgan.co.uk).
Hebden Bridge, West Yorkshire Hebden has a thriving town centre of 180 independent retailers and a four-times-a-week market The four bedroom Coach House in Hebden Bridge is on the market for £475,000 Average sold price last year: £248,000 The market at Hebden Bridge sells mouth-watering produce including pies, pastries, cheeses and locally-reared meat. Since Hebden became popular in the 1960s, it has been a centre of alternative lifestyles and free thought and it is all down to two canny old hippies, Reg and Marion. At that time Hebden was all but dead: 60 per cent of the shops were closed; many houses were abandoned and virtually worthless.
So, the couple picked up a cottage for a penny (the going rate at the time) and bagged a 75 per cent grant to carry out renovation work. In a few months, they had a perfectly pleasant home. News of the ruse spread and soon like-minded creative types joined them en-masse and the nucleus of this arty, off-beat little community was formed.
Today Hebden has a thriving town centre of 180 independent retailers and a four-times-a-week market. Sited at the base of a steep valley, many of the cottages are the distinctive double-decker homes, each one a two-up, two-down cottage built on top of another, facing in opposite directons. Just like Reg and Marion’s.
On the market: Reeds Rains are selling the four bedroom Coach House in Hebden Bridge for £475,000 (reedsrains.co.uk).
Buxton, Derbyshire The Opera House in Buxton which is littered with Roman and Georgian buildings interspersed with Victorian parks Bourne House, a seven bedroom link detached on London Road, is going for £525,000 Average sold price last year: £269,000 It has been said before but there is a touch of Bath about Buxton, with its Crescent, reminiscent of the ‘real’ Crescent in Bath, as well as its Roman and Georgian buildings interspersed with Victorian parks. The marketplace in Higher Buxton, at 1,032 feet above sea level, is thought to be the highest one in England. The markets themselves are a flagship for commerce in the town.
The first Saturday of each month has craft, quirky and vintage stalls; on the third there is a food and drink special and there are others to coincide with regular events. The big cultural shindig of the year is the Buxton International Festival when opera, ballets, all types of musicians and literary types hit the town. In terms of day-to-day shopping, there are the predictable Waitrose, Aldi and Sainsbury’s stores.
But for those who fancy something different, there is Beer District in the Cavendish Arcade where you can sample 300 varieties of ciders and gins, as well as the charming independent boutiques found in the Crescent. Buxton, which has a population of around 22,000, has enough restaurants and bars for even the most determined foodie. The primary schools are uniformly ‘good’ with Burbage Primary marked ‘outstanding’ by Ofsted.
Buxton Community School is now an academy. For the best houses in elegant Buxton, try the Burbage side of town, where imposing Victorian homes sell for over a million pounds. Elsewhere you can pick up a good Edwardian home for half that price.
On the market: Crowther Key is selling Bourne House , a seven bedroom link detached on London Road for £525,000 (crowtherkey.co.uk).
Saffron Walden, Essex Saffron Walden has two markets a week, with the one on Tuesday being traditional and the Saturday iteration being more cosmopolitan A two bedroom cottage in Radwinter Road is fetching £340,000 Average price last year: £444,000 The markets in Saffron Walden are a major attraction. There are two a week – the Tuesday market is traditional and the Saturday market is more cosmopolitan. As well as Aldi and Tesco, there are plenty of good independent shops such as the excellent Sage and Saffron deli and the award-winning Joseph Barnes wines.
As for the arts, there is the wonderful Fry Art Gallery, a not-for-profit community cinema, Saffron Screen and the world-class concert venue, Saffron Hall. Bridgen End is an English-style garden and orchard that's brilliant for walks. Max Chater was in for a surprise when he moved with his young family from Walthamstow, London to Saffron Walden in Essex three years ago.
‘I had presumed we were coming to a quiet, traditional market town with lovely medieval architecture where nothing much happens,’ says Max, 37, who is a restauranteur. ‘Instead, I found a really buzzing atmosphere, with lots of opportunities for new businesses.’ So taken was Max that he opened a pasta restaurant, Chaters, in the town.
The schools are all judged ‘good’ by Ofsted and South Walden County High is ‘outstanding.’ Families practically queue up to buy the Victorian villas and Arts and Crafts-style homes on Mount Pleasant Road, South Road and West Road at about £1.5million.
You can buy a cute little cottage in Castle Street for £350,000. On the market: Cheffins is selling a two bedroom cottage in Radwinter Road , Saffron Walden for £340,000 (cheffins.co.
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