A south-facing garden is a licence to cash in to the tune of an extra £22,000, according to Rightmove – a trend Hertfordshire movers don’t seem to be following.

Homes on the property portal with a south-facing garden are priced 7 per cent higher on average (£22,695) than those without – and typically change hands 48-hours faster than the competition, in just 45 days.

Here in the East of England the asking price premium is only 2 per cent, while the time taken for homes with south-facing gardens to find a buyer is four days faster than those without, at 45 days.

Access to sunny outside space matters more up north, with the highest asking price premium of 14 per cent being found in Yorkshire and the Humber. This is also the area where the gap between homes with south-facing gardens and those without is most significant, with the former being snapped up eight days faster, in an average of 39 days.

A survey by Rightmove back in May found that having a bigger garden or at least access to one was the number one thing that movers were now looking for as a result of lockdown.

The amount of wannabe movers searching for homes with gardens on the portal doubled in June compared to a year ago, while total buyer searches were up by 56 per cent for the same period.

Glynis Frew, chief executive of Hunters Estates Agents, who have several offices in Hertfordshire, said: “South-facing gardens have always been desirable due to getting the most hours of sunlight in a day.

“With people spending more time at home now due to lockdown and the rise of flexible home working, it’s little surprise that a south-facing garden is more sought after to make the most of this.”