Below is our plain-English summary of what’s happened across sales, rentals and mixed-use/commercial, plus what we think that means heading into 2026.

1) Residential sales: Kent has softened, but held up better than many areas

The headline: average house prices in Kent fell by around 5% between Q2 2024 and Q2 2025 (based on Land Registry data), compared with larger falls across the wider region and England & Wales.

What’s more useful for investors is the district-level picture:

• Up slightly: Dartford (+1%), Gravesham (+1%)
• Flat-ish: Folkestone & Hythe (0%), Dover (-1%), Thanet (-1%), Medway (-2%)
• Down more meaningfully: Canterbury (-9%), Swale (-9%), Ashford (-7%), Maidstone (-7%), Sevenoaks (-7%), Tunbridge Wells (-7%)

The message is clear: micro-markets matter. “Kent” isn’t one market — it’s many.

Buyer behaviour in 2025: pricing has become more sensitive. One key indicator is the level of reductions: roughly 1 in 10 listings saw price cuts, above the longer-term average.
That’s why, in this market, presentation + realistic pricing are what get deals over the line.

2) Rental demand: steady demand, but quality wins

On the residential side, demand remains supported by Kent’s role as a London commuter region and its own draw as a place to live. Locations near stations continue to benefit as office attendance increases, and family demand remains strong.

For landlords and long-term investors, the practical takeaway is:

• Well-located, well-finished homes let more reliably
• “Tired” properties increasingly face a choice: upgrade, discount, or struggle

This is one reason we’re seeing more momentum around:

• refurbishment-led upgrades,
• energy efficiency improvements,
• and higher-quality rental product in town centres.

3) Mixed-use and high street: pressure, but also clear pockets of strength

Kent’s retail market in 2025 has been a story of adaptation:

• Retail sales growth returned in mid-2025 (e.g., +0.6% in July and +0.5% in August).
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• Retail parks and food-led retail have been the strongest performers, attracting renewed investor interest.
• Investment yields for retail parks improved slightly, reported around 5.5–6%.

High streets are mixed: some brands have closed stores, but space is being reshaped by new occupiers and more “experience” retail. Former large units (such as old Wilko sites) have seen new uses, and councils are increasingly repurposing assets toward health, leisure and services.

Two stats worth noting from an investor perspective:

• Some Kent centres saw a return to rental growth: Canterbury (+17%) and Ashford (+23%) were highlighted as examples.
• Prime town investment yields were reported as holding broadly steady around 7.25–8.25%, while weaker secondary locations remained materially higher (often 11.5%+).

What this means for mixed-use investors: the “right” mixed-use (strong residential plus sensible ground-floor use) can be a resilience play — but tenant quality and location selection matter more than ever.

4) Offices: fewer big moves, but strong demand for flexible, high-quality space

Office demand is being shaped by hybrid working, which is pushing occupiers toward:

• Grade A sustainable space
• and serviced offices / flexible workspace

Examples from Kent include serviced office schemes showing low vacancies and rents rising toward £30 per sq ft in some locations, with record rents in the mid-£30s per sq ft in Sevenoaks for high-quality space.

For mixed-use investors, this matters because secondary office stock is increasingly a candidate for repurposing or mixed-use repositioning.

5) Housing supply: constraints are real — and that creates opportunity

Supply pressures remain a big theme.

Two dynamics investors should understand:

1. Build-out and planning friction: approvals may improve over time, but planning remains slow.
2. Nutrient neutrality: this has continued to restrict delivery in parts of east Kent, though mitigation credit schemes have helped unlock stalled development in some areas.

Meanwhile, major schemes continue to progress across the county, including:

• Ebbsfleet Garden City (with 5,000+ homes delivered, and 648 completed in the latest year referenced)
• Westwood Village near Thanet (first phase referenced as 900 homes plus a primary school)
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6) Infrastructure and regeneration: what’s landing now, and what feeds 2026 confidence

Kent continues to benefit from long-horizon infrastructure that supports jobs, connectivity and demand:

• Lower Thames Crossing: approved in March 2025; £590m awarded in June 2025 for design and surveys ahead of a construction phase expected from 2026, with an aim to reduce Dartford Crossing traffic by ~20% and open by 2032.
• North Thanet Link: outline business case approved and funding committed in 2025; construction expected from 2028 (subject to consents).
• Folkestone town centre regeneration: £19.8m Levelling Up funding, started April 2025 and due to complete in Summer 2026.
• Thanet Parkway station: opened July 2023; service frequency increased to two trains per hour across the day; passenger journeys in its second full year were up 50%+.

These projects matter because they shape liquidity (how easily you can sell), rental demand, and long-term “why here?” confidence.

7) 2026 outlook: cautious optimism, with policy risk in the background

Looking into 2026, sentiment is generally “cautiously positive”, but with an obvious caveat: fiscal and policy decisions can quickly change investor behaviour.
There’s also a view that forecasts are unusually difficult beyond 2025 given expected government decisions and market sensitivity to tax and affordability.

What we’re doing in the market (and why)

Based on the conditions above, we’re leaning into two complementary strategies:

1. Long-term holds: blocks of flats + well-bought mixed-use in Kent towns
   Town-centre regeneration, transport upgrades, and the shift toward diversified “live/work/leisure” hubs make well-selected multi-unit assets attractive for long-term compounding — provided the fundamentals stack up.
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3. Short-term profit plays: flipping 3-bedroom houses
   In a cautious sales market, three-beds remain one of the broadest buyer categories. Our focus is on buying at the right basis, improving the product, and keeping optionality through Plan B exits where suitable.

If you’d like to partner with us on Kent opportunities please fill in your contact details and we’ll share what we’re working on and how we can work together.