The one thing that can add an average of £16,000 to the price of your home

One feature can add thousands on to the price of your home, but unfortunately it’s not something a builder can help with.

Homes with a south-facing garden typically command a £16,000 higher price tag and sell nine days faster than those without, analysis by a property website suggests.

The average “premium” for a home with a south-facing garden is around 4% or £16,226, according to Rightmove – which analysed properties across England and Wales.

The south west and south east of England have the highest percentage price premiums of 5%.

On average, it takes 62 days to find a buyer for a home with a south-facing garden and 71 days to find a purchaser for a home with a non-south-facing garden.

The biggest difference in speed is in the East Midlands, where south-facing homes find a buyer 17 days more quickly than non-south-facing ones on average.

Tim Bannister, Rightmove’s property expert, said: “Having a south-facing garden has always been highly desirable for buyers, as it can mean enjoying longer hours of sunlight despite the unpredictable British weather.

“Our analysis shows this desirability is not only reflected in price but also in speed to sell, as houses with south-facing gardens take less time to find a buyer on average than houses with non-south facing gardens.

“It’s clearly a significant selling point which sellers should look to highlight when marketing their property, as it might help their home stand out on a buyer’s shortlist.”

Here are the typical house price premiums for a south-facing garden, according to Rightmove:

– South West, 5%

– South East, 5%

– Yorkshire and the Humber, 4%

– North East, 4%

– East Midlands, 4%

– West Midlands, 4%

– East of England, 3%

– North West, 3%

– Wales, 3%

– London, 2%

And here are the average numbers of days taken to find a buyer for a home with a south-facing garden according to Rightmove, followed by the average time to find a buyer for a home with a non-south facing garden.

The number of days is the time from a property being first listed on Rightmove until being marketed under offer or sold subject to contract:

– East Midlands, 56, 73

– North West, 59, 74

– Yorkshire and the Humber, 57, 71

– North East, 55, 65

– Wales, 63, 72

– East of England, 65, 73

– London, 66, 72

– West Midlands, 68, 74

– South West, 69, 72

– South East, 70, 71

Rightmove’s analysis also found that Worthing, Shoreham-by-Sea and Slough, all in the south east of England, have particularly high concentrations of south-facing gardens currently for sale on the website.

Perry Dray, sales manager from Oakwood Estates in Burnham, Slough said: “It’s great to see sunny Slough basking in glory.”