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Urban green spaces increase house prices in England and Wales
This article is an external press release originally published on the Landlord News website, which has now been migrated to the Just Landlords blog.
Urban green spaces have increased nearby house prices by an average of £2,500, according to the latest report from the Office for National Statistics (ONS).
Public green spaces have apparently boosted the prices of detached houses the most. Such properties attract a 1.9% premium if they are within 100 metres of a public green space, according to the report.
ONS looked at the details of over one million property sales in England and Wales between 2009 and 2016 from Zoopla to collect this data. It then created an analysis using Ordnance Survey’s Open Greenspace data, which has been gathered using maps and aerial imagery.
It takes into account:
- Public parks or gardens
- Play spaces
- Playing fields
- Sports facilities
- Golf courses
- Allotments or community growing spaces
- Religious grounds and cemeteries
However, it doesn’t include:
- Woodlands
- Heaths
- Any other open spaces that might be used for recreation
David Westgate, Group Chief Executive at Andrews Property Group, has commented: “For urban properties close to open spaces, the grass really is greener when it comes to house prices.
“There is without doubt a correlation between property prices and a well-maintained green space.
“It may not quite have the impact on prices that proximity to a tube station has, but being close to an open space does push up values, all the more so if a property overlooks them.
“Add a café and a meeting place and the premium families place on the green space becomes even greater.
“While people in detached houses may have less practical need of a green space than those in flats, proximity to one adds to the cachet of their home and boosts its price accordingly.
“It goes without saying that where most nearby properties have been converted into flats that lack gardens, the local park becomes even more important, and that too can drive up prices.
“Town planners 120 years ago got it right and the creation of open green spaces continues to have huge appeal for local people and exert a material influence on values.”
