How much are puppies in the UK?

Getting a puppy from a dogs home is unrealistic for me since I live in an apartment with no garden and dogs homes seem to have a strong preference for homes with gardens.

Doesn't having no garden cause an issue for you getting a dog from anywhere?

Are you going to be available to take the dog out whenever it needs to do its business, including last thing at night and first thing in the morning? Where will you take the dog to wee and poo? Are you going to be able to exercise it properly?

Why do you think that is?
Do you rent? Are you allowed a dog?

Personally, I don't like small dogs - they're cats without the independence, and not very bright. I would also be wary of buying a pure breed, as they can have genetic issues, and are bred for characteristics that can be problematic for the animal.

The initial cost is one thing, but vets bills can also be high, if you're unlucky.

Puppies are expensive for one of 4 reasons

1) They are a fad colour like 'lilac', 'blue' or 'merle'. Typically these colours are introduced to capitalise on already popular breeds. The colour itself isn't a major concern (minus merle which can cause health issues when bred in certain combinations), personally i dont care what colour a dog is providing it is healthy. However breeding these 'rare' colours hints at the breeders motives which is earning as much cash as possible. I've seen 'lilac tri' bulldogs going for £10,000. These breeders do not care about health only lining their own pockets. You could argue this for any breeder, even KC reg ones however generally a KC breeder usually has to conduct some sort of health testing and genetic tree. As 'unrecognised' colours such as lilacs and blues cannot be KC registered any breeder proclaiming to be such is lying.

2) They are a popular breed, similar to the above but covers all popular breeds. Currently deformed and generally unhealthy breeds are popular at the moment (dacshund, pugs, english bulldogs, french bulldogs) as demand drives supply naturally the prices will go up.

3) Conversely if the breed is a rare breed and hard to find in the UK (dogs like bouvier de flandres, irish setters, airedale terriers, pulis etc) the price tends to be raised as with anything that is rare. Note rare here is in actual terms of numbers not 'rare' as in non-registered colours.
Sometimes breeds that have high demands in terms of maintenance, feeding requirements, exercise etc have a higher cost to put off potentially unsuitable people who want the breed as some sort of status symbol. I.e great danes or giant breeds just because they look cool and intimidating. Giant breeds tend to be very expensive over their lifetime in terms of food etc so it is an argument that the costs upfront should be quite expensive to see if people are in a financial position to commit.

4) If the dog has undergone extensive health testing. Responsible breeders will test for things that are common in the breed e.g heart issues in dobermans, hip scores in german sheperds. This can be very expensive in terms of vet costs so the breeder needs to make that money back somehow. Naturally this will increase the cost.

Personally 3 and 4 are the only ones i would consider as worth paying. I wouldnt buy a pedigree myself just because of the whole health issue thing but i respect people have the choice to make that decision. I would just say make sure it is extensively health tested and shy away from those breeds whose conformation make it almost impossible to be entirely healthy (e.g even if your pug has no breathing or spine issues it is physically impossible for their dentition to be correct as you cannot fit all of their teeth into their non-existent mouth).
Even if you are going for a crossbreed puppy, especially if it is a first gen outcross (i.e two different breeds) it is important that the parents are health tested for the health issues common in their respective breeds as although crossbreeds tend to be healthier (a french bulldog beagle cross will typically take on the longer muzzle of the beagle and the health benefits of that), two unhealthy parents will produce an unhealthy offspring no matter the breed.

It really doesnt sound like you've thought this through.
A few blades of grass sticking through a deck isnt enough for a dog to pee on ( unless of course you want a smelly deck ). There is an obvious reason why adoption places dont like to adopt out to people without yards or gardens.

I've been planning on getting a puppy for years now but wanted to wait until I finished uni which I did this summer. I was looking online however and saw that most puppies are being sold for £2000+. I assumed most puppies would be around £500 or so. I read that due to lockdown there has been a huge increase in puppy sales therefore they are being sold at an increased price. Does this mean puppies aren't usually so expensive? Should I wait a year or so before buying or am I being unrealistic assuming a puppy would only cost me a few hundred pounds?

Getting a puppy from a dogs home is unrealistic for me since I live in an apartment with no garden and dogs homes seem to have a strong preference for homes with gardens. I also want a small and relatively calm dog because I don't have a garden. I think the combination of wanting a puppy, a small/calm dog breed and living in an apartment eliminates the option of me getting a puppy from a dogs home.

Advice/opinions?

your post appears you are in the UK as you are quoting in £ ..yet later you say "I live in an apartment" which is rather an American thing to say.


Why?

siberian huskes need alot of rescuing , if this is a breed you can handle id definetly recommend them 👌

Lol I use apartment and flat interchangeably.