• On average, London houses closest to Circle Line stations are the most expensive, those nearest the Central Line are cheapest
• London Overground link provides boost to house prices in Southwark
Commenting on the figures, Robert Gardner, Nationwide's Chief Economist, said:
“As the London Underground celebrates its 150th anniversary, Nationwide has found that living close to a tube or railway station can demand a hefty premium on the price of a house (after taking account of other property characteristics, such as property type, size and local neighbourhood type).
A property located 500m from a station attracts a 9% price premium (approximately £26,000 on a typical London home) over an otherwise identical property 1,500m from a station. This price premium is two percentage points higher than when we conducted similar research in 2010, where the data suggested a 7% premium.
Impact on house prices is greatest close to stations
Premiums increase as you move closer to a station, as you would expect. A property located 1,000m from a station would command a 4.1% premium, whilst at 750m this increases to 6.3% and 8.8% at 500m from the station.
Interestingly, only 6% of properties in London are more than 1,500m away from a station, and the vast majority of these are in outer suburban areas, where stations tend to be more spread out serving larger catchments.
Changes to transport network also a factor to consider over time
The most recent addition to the London Overground network opened in December 2012, providing a link south from Surrey Quays to Clapham Junction via the Inner South London line. A London Overground service is now operating between Clapham Junction and Highbury & Islington, improving rail connectivity in the borough of Southwark. This appears to have had a positive impact on property prices in the area; Southwark was the best performing borough in 2012, with prices rising 11% over the year.
The boroughs best served by the tube and rail network include Camden and Tower Hamlets, where over 80% of properties are within 500m of a station. These boroughs are also some of the most expensive areas in the capital. Havering and Bexley are amongst the least connected boroughs, with fewer than 20% of properties within 500m of a station. Average house prices tend to be lower in these areas, but this also reflects that they are further away from central London.
Amongst the outer boroughs, Brent stand outs as having good transport connections, with more than 50% of properties within 500m of a station. Brent benefits from access to a number of tube lines, with the Metropolitan, Jubilee, Piccadilly and Bakerloo all passing through. It also has good rail connections, with London Overground services to Euston and Chiltern Railways services to Marylebone.
Which tube line is associated with the highest house prices?
The Circle line serves the capital’s most expensive areas taking in much of central London and also parts of west London. Average house prices are over £650,000 in areas where the nearest station is on the Circle line. Average house prices are least expensive where the nearest station is on the Central line. Although the line passes through some of west London’s pricier areas such as Notting Hill, it also serves some of east London’s least expensive boroughs, such as Waltham Forest and Redbridge.”
