London, Manchester and Glasgow home buyers ‘pay premium to live near stations’

London home buyers face paying a £42,700 premium typically to buy a property 500 metres from the nearest station, compared with purchasing a property further away, analysis suggests.

Nationwide Building Society looked at the premium for being close to stations in Glasgow and Manchester as well as London, comparing prices 500 metres from a station with those 1,500 metres away.

In Greater Manchester, the average house price premium for being close to a station was £10,900 and in Glasgow it was £8,800.

Andrew Harvey, Nationwide’s senior economist, said: “Our recent market research confirms that transport links remain important to those living in major cities, with over 80% of Londoners saying being near a station was either ‘fairly important’ or ‘very important’ when choosing to buy or rent their current property. Meanwhile, in Glasgow and Manchester, around 60% of respondents stated being near a station was either ‘fairly’ or ‘very important’.

“This is likely to reflect that those living in London typically use their local station more often, with nearly 60% using either rail or Tube more than once a week. This compares with 37% in Glasgow (for rail and subway) and 35% in Manchester (for rail and Metrolink).

“Eighty-five per cent of respondents in our sample across London, Manchester and Glasgow live within a half-hour walk of a station. Amongst these people, the most cited reasons for choosing to live near a station were that it’s a quick way to travel about the city and that it makes the commute to work easier. Interestingly, 10% don’t have or want a car.”

He added: “We also asked survey respondents how much more they would pay to live in an area with good transport links compared to an area with poor links.

“On average, respondents were willing to pay 8% more, although there is a significant spread of opinion, with nearly 30% of those in London willing to pay more than 10% extra to live in an area with good transport links.”

Mr Harvey said: “London home buyers continue to be willing to pay a significant premium for being close to a station compared with those in Glasgow and Manchester. This is consistent with our market research findings and likely reflects the greater reliance on public transport in the capital.”

Nationwide also found that, in London, average house prices are around £729,000 in areas where the nearest station is on the Circle Line, compared with £401,000 for the Elizabeth Line.

For its analysis of London house price premiums, Nationwide included properties located within the London boroughs only, excluding some of the outer extremes of the network. It included London Underground, Docklands Light Railway, London Overground, the Elizabeth Line and National Rail stations.

Nationwide also looked at properties located within the Greater Manchester metropolitan boroughs (Manchester, Bolton, Bury, Oldham, Rochdale, Salford, Stockport, Tameside, Trafford and Wigan). It included Manchester Metrolink stops and National Rail stations within Greater Manchester, except Denton and Reddish South stations due to limited data.

The research also looked at the Greater Glasgow area covering Glasgow City, Inverclyde, West Dunbartonshire, East Dunbartonshire, East Renfrewshire, Renfrewshire, South Lanarkshire and North Lanarkshire. Glasgow Subway and National Rail stations were included in the research.

Nationwide also commissioned Censuswide to carry out a survey, which included 1,000 people in London, 1,000 in Manchester and 1,000 in Glasgow in August and September.

Mary-Lou Press, president of NAEA (National Association of Estate Agents) Propertymark, said: “Good schools, access to better transport links and ideal local social environments are key for many people when looking to move.

“Changing work habits, particularly the rise of remote and hybrid working, have made relocating a much more realistic option for many people.

“These flexible models enable individuals to move to more affordable areas or places offering a better quality of life, all while keeping their current jobs.”

Here are average house prices in London where a particular line is the nearest station, according to Nationwide’s analysis:

Circle, £729,000

Bakerloo, £617,000

Victoria, £587,000

Northern, £570,000

Hammersmith and City, £563,000

District, £552,000

Jubilee, £541,000

Overground, £529,000

Piccadilly, £515,000

Central, £488,000

Docklands Light Railway, £475,000

Metropolitan, £463,000

Elizabeth Line, £401,000