Both the Local and Open Markets performed well in the face of continued economic and political headwinds, with activity at the end of last year significantly ahead of the previous 12 months.

Encouragingly, 2026 has started life in a similar fashion, with some noteworthy deals already agreed in January and the early days of February.

Some of these are carryovers from the pent-up demand of 2025 – but we are also seeing fresh interest.

Exchanges are up on what’s considered normal for this time of year and people who had seemingly held off appear to have dusted down their plans to move.

Interestingly, a number of offers are on properties that have been on the market for some time, suggesting a degree of renewed motivation from buyers who have been watching the markets closely, as well as from those who are newly registered.

Local Market

A slight reduction of prices combined with a softening of interest rates saw urgency return to the Local Market in 2025. The upturn in transaction numbers was notable, and this intent has continued in 2026.

According to the latest property bulletin from the States of Guernsey, 816 Local Market homes were sold last year –  with 56% of those transactions taking place after June. This was a 38% increase on 2024 when 591 properties changed hands.

The last three months of 2025 witnessed 246 sales on the Local Market – the busiest end to the year we have seen since 2020. The majority of these were in the £500,000 to £699,999 bracket.

The average price paid for a Local Market home meanwhile was £595,820 – 1.4% down on 2024 but 20% higher than five years ago.

Open Market

Open Market activity also witnessed an improvement compared to 2024. However, while transaction numbers were up, there’s still a good bit of headroom before we reach the highs of the early 2020s.

The States of Guernsey property bulletin shows that 72 homes were sold on the Open Market last year, compared to 68 in 2024. Of these, 64% of transactions happened in the final half of the year.

The average price paid for an Open Market property across the whole of 2025 meanwhile was £1,723,922 – 0.4% down on 2024 but 38.9% up on 2020.

2026 outlook

Of course, the market isn’t perfect. Sellers still need to be realistic on price. But both the Local and Open Markets appear to have steadied – supported by a relatively stable mortgage market and the expectation of further interest rate cuts.

Demand remains strong and several offers have been made in the early part of the year. Just as importantly, these offers are also being accepted.

Whilst the markets will likely remain finely balanced for the early part of 2026, momentum should build as confidence grows and decisions start to be made. Pragmatism will remain key to achieving successful sales, creating plenty of opportunities for well-informed buyers and sellers.

Rental market

According to the latest States of Guernsey property bulletin renters paid an average of £2,162 a month for Local Market homes in the final quarter of 2025, which was 6.1% up on rents at the end of 2024.

Emily Rowe, associate in the property management team at Savills in Guernsey, said: "The introduction of the minimum standards legislation has caused a level of caution from both landlords and tenants.

“However, there remains a lack of supply in both the Open and Local Markets. Demand continues to be strong and two-bedroom properties in St Peter Port are particularly sought after.

“The removal of the additional duty levied on the purchase of second properties should help bring more properties to the rental market, but that may take some time to filter through."