Why do people love market towns?

Often acclaimed as the happiest places to live in the whole of the UK, they offer an idyllic rural lifestyle and beautiful period properties. And this appeal often translates into value, with buyers willing to spend around 5% above the national average to get their dream home. Thriving from the original markets, local high streets tend to flourish, local produce is rife, and the heart of the town is always bustling with residents.

Market towns are the perfect blend of small-town community and the variety you’d expect in a big city. They tend to be smaller than cities but bigger than villages, offering a charming balance between rural-living andhaving amenities on hand.

Where to buy?

Here are some of our favourite spots across the UK

Market Harborough is one of the most desirable market towns thanks to the stunning countryside nearby, direct and fast trains to London, and the fantastic array of highly regarded schools.

The town has a mix of both high street names and individual boutiques, with delightful coffee shops and restaurants. There’s a monthly farmers’ market, a theatre where many London shows start their life, and the draw of living near local celebs like Martin Johnson and Englebert Humperdinck.

Ludlow is a medieval market town with roots in the years following the Norman Conquest.

More recently, it has been famous for its gastronomic reputation with some of Britain’s finest chefs like Will Holland and ClaudeBosi passing through local restaurants in recent years. The thriving market offers excellent local produce, and the collection of eclectic and independent shops and cafes, plus regular festivals, adds to the wonderful sense of community.

Cirencester lives up to its name as a market town with its weekly food, flower and mixed markets, along with a thriving craft market twice a month. It’s also got great access to the main regional centres of Bath, Bristol, Cheltenham, Oxford and Swindon.

Moreton-in-Marsh dates back 1,000 years and still has a weekly market. Here you’re not far from Daylesford – the place to be for foodies - and have other close-by attractions like the stunning Blenheim Palace or the chic members’-only Soho Farmhouse.

It has plenty of stunning countryside to explore without being a million miles away from the likes of larger centres like Cheltenham, Oxford, and London.

Framlingham is an historic town in Suffolk. The centre is largely a conservation area of timber-framed or pink-painted plastered cottages, Georgian, Regency and Victorian buildings, all higgledy-piggledy, with the straggly streets out of town a mishmash of suburban piles, old cottages and60s semis. It’s also home to Ed Sheeran, who often pops into his local –The Station Hotel - for a pint.