A tale of two Greens

A LONE England flag flies from a lamppost, gently fluttering against the pale blue sky, overlooking discarded nitrous oxide canisters on a car park.

- JAMIE BRASSINGTON News Reporter

It's quiet down the back streets of Greets Green on this crisp autumn afternoon, where the only visible sign of life is a cat darting into the road, forcing a young woman to slam on her brakes.

Around the corner it’s a little more busy along Greets Green Road, considered a rat run by locals, where a flock of geese gather around a large puddle on a different car park.

I've travelled to the small suburb in West Bromwich where latest house prices appear to have split the neighbourhood down the middle.

According to new research, property prices in the western part of Greets Green are among the fastest rising in the West Midlands while in the eastern part it's the total opposite.

The study found that house prices in Greets Green West rose by 38.1% in the 12 months up to March 2025 - the second biggest increase out of all neighbourhoods in the West Midlands as they rose from £181,000 to £249,950.

In the same period, house prices in Greets Green East fell by 18.4% - the tenth biggest decrease in the West Midlands, as they dipped from £165,500 to £135,000.

That puts Greets Green West and Greets Green East in the top 10 and bottom 10 lists of the region respectively.

For such a little area, why has there been such a big difference?

Shopkeeper Manzoor Hussain, aged 54, who runs Lifestyle Express convenience store on Whitehall Road in the western part of Greets Green, said houses tended to be 'bigger' in the western part making them 'highly sought after.