London is among the regions with some of the biggest differences in the time it takes to sell a home – with Westminster taking an average of 63 days, compared with just 33 days in Waltham Forest, according to property website Zoopla.

The figures show Waltham Forest as the area where home are selling the quickest – a borough that includes areas like Chingford, Walthamstow, Leyton and Leytonstone. ,

In London, Westminster was the slowest-selling local authority in the analysis, with homes taking 63 days on average to sell. Tower Hamlets was also among the slowest markets nationally, at 60 days.

By comparison, Waltham Forest was London’s fastest-selling area, with homes taking an average of 33 days to sell. Tower Hamlets is one of London’s slowest-selling markets, with homes taking an average of 60 days to sell in July 2026.

While the average time to sell of 42 days has remained unchanged in the year to July, this masks a widening gap between faster local markets and weaker areas, the website said. Around half (180 of the 363) of the local authorities Zoopla analysed had seen an increase in the average number of days taken to sell a property in the past year.

In Melton in the East Midlands, Zoopla said it took 76 days on average to sell the average home – a 21-day increase compared with July 2025.

Higher average mortgage rates have led to a “wait and see” approach for more buyers – lengthening the time it takes to find a buyer across many regional and local housing markets, Zoopla said.

Richard Donnell, executive director at Zoopla, said: “While the national time to sell has barely moved, that stability is masking a real divide opening up between local markets.

“In areas like Melton in Leicestershire, homes are taking noticeably longer to sell than a year ago, while markets just a short drive away are speeding up.”

He suggested: “If you’re selling in a slower market, don’t take a ‘wait and see’ approach – talk to a local agent who knows what’s happening street by street, and make sure your home is priced right from day one.”

Zoopla’s “time to sell” research tracked the period from homes being first listed on the market to estate agents reporting sales agreed. Some local authorities were excluded from the research due to small sample sizes.

Here are the slowest and fastest selling locations in nations and regions, according to Zoopla, with the average selling time in days:

East Midlands, Melton, 76, North West Leicestershire, 32East of England, South Norfolk, 58, Rochford 33London, Westminister, 63, Waltham Forest, 33North East, Middlesborough, 54, North Tyneside, 26North West, Eden, 55, Carlisle, 23Scotland, Aberdeenshire, 45, Falkirk, 11South East, Isle of Wight/Thanet, 60, Basingstoke and Deane, 29South West, Teignbridge, 63, Plymouth, 33Wales, Pembrokeshire, 50, Neath Port Talbot, 29West Midlands, Wyre Forest/Shropshire, 49, Newcastle- under-Lyme, 27Yorkshire and the Humber, North East Lincolnshire, 57, Barnsley, 23

Here are the fastest selling hotspots, according to Zoopla, with the average number of days to sell a property. The figures were taken in July 2026:

1. Falkirk, 11=2. Renfrewshire, 13=2. North Lanarkshire, 13=4. South Lanarkshire, 14=4. East Ayrshire, 14=4. East Renfrewshire, 14=4. West Dunbartonshire, 14=8. Stirling, 15=8. Glasgow City, 1510. Clackmannanshire, 16

Here are the slowest selling local areas in the analysis, according to Zoopla, with the average number of days to sell a property. The figures were taken in July 2026:

1. Melton, 76=2. Westminister, 63=2. Teignbridge, 634. Torridge, 61=5. Tower Hamlets, 60=5. Isle of Wight, 60=5. Thanet, 60=5. North Devon, 60=9. South Norfolk, 58=9. Elmbridge, 58