London homes close to transport links rise despite pandemic: Nationwide | Mortgage Strategy

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Property prices in London and Glasgow close to transport links rose this year, despite the pandemic, according to data from Nationwide.

But in Manchester homes close to transport hubs have fallen in value, says a special June report from the lender’s House Price Index.

A London property 500m from a Tube station attracts a 9.7% price premium, about £46,800, over an otherwise identical property 1,500m from a station, says the report which covers last April to March of this year.

This is higher than the 8.6% premium these homes commanded 12 months previously. Nationwide Senior Economist Andrew Harvey says: “The pandemic does not appear to have reduced the desirability of being close to a station in London, despite reduced public transport usage.”

He adds: “It would appear that those buying in the capital continue to value accessibility to rail and tube links.

“And while public transport utilisation remains well below pre-pandemic levels, TfL reports that the re-opening of shops, pubs and restaurants has helped boost Tube usage.”

The survey says house prices are highest close to the Circle Line, which serves the capital’s most expensive areas taking in much of central London and parts of west

London, with average house prices of around £850,000 in areas close to a link.

While homes close to TfL Rail station, running from east London to central London, have the lowest house prices of capital homes close to a transport link, with prices averaging £395,000.

Harvey says: “The lower prices for TfL Rail may reflect that most of these stations are outside of central London and that delivery of the Crossrail project remains behind schedule.”

Glasgow has the largest network of suburban railway lines in the UK outside of London, with around 155 railway stations and 15 subway links.

The report says homebuyers over the last year paid a 7.2% price premium (around £11,400 based on average prices in the region) over an otherwise identical property 1,500m from a station.

This has jumped from a 3.5% premium in 2019-20.

Harvey says: “It is perhaps surprising that the premium for transport links in Scotland’s largest city has increased despite the reduction in public transport usage.

But it would appear to suggest that those who are buying do still value these links and expect to use them again in the future.

“Indeed, pre-pandemic, Glasgow and the surrounding area saw a much higher proportion of people using trains to travel to work than other parts of Scotland.”

Greater Manchester is served by an extensive network of railway and tram lines, and over recent years has seen the expansion of the Metrolink network to Manchester Airport, the launch of the Second City Crossing in 2017 and the opening of the Trafford Park line in March.

Homebuyers last year paid a 6.1% price premium (about £11,000 based on average prices in the region) for properties 500m from a station over an otherwise identical property 1,500m away.

However, this has fallen from the 9% premium they paid in the prior year.

Harvey says: “While we can’t be certain why the premium has fallen, it is possible that priorities for homebuyers in the Greater Manchester area have changed during the pandemic, with a greater emphasis placed on things like local amenities and access to outdoor space.”


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