Estate agents selling homes in sleepy Cotswolds villages are branching out all the way across the pond – think Selling Sunset meets Countryfile.
With the likes of Beyoncé and Ellen DeGeneres buying into the chocolate box fairy tale, this part of the world is fast becoming “the Hamptons of the UK”.
Buying agents from the region are regularly flying out to New York, Los Angeles and Miami, says Harry Gladwin, of The Buying Solution.
Estate agencies are now “actively starting a marketing campaign to target American buyers”, adds Nicholas Le Ny-Clarke, of Cotswolds agency Chartwell Noble. Some are even basing representatives in the United States “to try and sell the Cotswolds dream”, says Philip Harvey, of Property Vision.
Ellen DeGeneres bought a £15m farmhouse in the Cotswolds that she’s now selling for £22.5m – Property Kitebridge Farm/Sothebys Realty
The celebrity element certainly hasn’t harmed its appeal.
Beyoncé reportedly purchased a 58-acre plot in the village of Wigginton. Meanwhile, DeGeneres and her partner Portia de Rossi moved to the Cotswolds late last year after the election of Donald Trump, the US president. The couple bought a £15m farmhouse, which they have remodelled and are now selling for £22.5m.
JD Vance, the US vice-president, went on holiday to the Cotswolds over the summer while it has been reported that Tom Cruise has been looking at properties in the area too.
US applications for UK citizenship hit a record high last year of 6,100 – a 26pc increase from 2023, according to government data.
Since the pandemic, there has been a 30pc uptick in American enquiries for homes in the Cotswolds at The Buying Solution.
It was the third most searched-for location by Americans on the website of estate agency Savills. This has soared 61pc year-on-year.
Nigel Bishop, of buying agency Recoco Property Search, says he has seen a 10pc increase in the number of enquiries from American buyers since the beginning of last year.
“While it is a popular destination for second homes, the majority of US house hunters are looking to relocate to towns such as Burford or Chipping Norton on a more permanent basis as these towns ooze what many consider the quintessentially English countryside lifestyle,” he says.
Buyers are happy to pay their way, Bishop adds.
Towns like Stow-on-the-Wold offer properties steeped in history – Andy Roland
“Earlier this year we introduced an American couple, both in their late 50s, to a stunning property in the north Cotswolds and they fell in love with it so much that they agreed to pay the vendor’s full asking price,” he says.
“It shows just how quickly some buyers act and how fast-paced the Cotswolds market can be.”
New Yorkers regularly pop to the Hamptons at the weekend, Gladwin says, so they are used to having a base in the country. But the attraction of the Cotswolds as a place to live – rather than as a weekend getaway – is stronger than ever.
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Another large proportion of buyers are used to “summering” in the Cotswolds, Gladwin says: “They come for three, four or five months of the year.”
Over the past 20 years, it has become a foodie destination, littered with members’ clubs – and it now has its own “brand”, Gladwin explains.
“Twenty years ago, your options would have been limited to some sort of country pursuit or going to an antique shop,” he says.
“Now the shops are far more diverse and interesting and pubs include proper gastro offerings – then you’ve got all these private members’ clubs like Soho Farmhouse or Estelle Manor.”
Private members’ clubs such as Estelle Manor offer more lifestyle options for Cotswolds newcomers
Attractions such as these are a crucial part of estate agents’ sales pitches.
Le Ny-Clarke adds: “The majority of briefs coming through for buying agents seem to be from American clients. Although the Cotswolds does sell itself, selling the lifestyle is important in terms of upmarket eateries and shops.”
Another selling point is a classic symbol of Britishness – the local boozer.
Gladwin says one of the first questions he is asked by prospective American buyers is how close the nearest pub is: “If you’re moving to a new area then it’s a place where you can meet everyone – from the lord of the manor to the local farmers.”
Gladwin says many of his clients went to Oxford University and want to return to the area. Others have been working in London and want to settle down in the British countryside.
Another draw of the area is the schools.
“A client I’ve just been with is American and they’re moving specifically for schooling so their children are going to school in Oxford. The UK’s education system is still really attractive – and they can weather the costs of VAT,” Gladwin says.
American buyers are particularly looking for the classic Cotswolds stone and old-fashioned properties steeped in history. “They don’t want a modern house that they could buy in America,” Gladwin says. “They don’t have the same kind of history that we do and that’s what they’re after.”
