Home buyers ‘face 50% premium to live in one of Britain’s protected green areas’
In some locations, buyers face paying more than double the average house price in the wider area, Savills said.
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Your support makes all the difference.Home buyers are paying around one and-a-half times typical property prices in their area to live within one of Britain’s protected green spaces, according to analysis.
The average price of a property sitting within the boundaries of a National Park is £422,225, compared with a county average of £279,171, property firm Savills found.
This equates to buyers paying a premium of 51%.
Living within a National Landscape (formerly Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty) commands a higher price tag at £581,121 on average, meaning buyers face paying a 48% premium, Savills found.
And in Scotland, buyers face paying 46% more to live in a National Scenic Area, at £285,175, according to the research.
In some locations, buyers face paying more than double the average house price in the wider area.
Chichester Harbour was found to command a particularly high house price premium compared with the county average at 122.1%, while homes in the Gower National Landscape in Wales also had a relatively high premium, at 121.8%.
The average house price in Chichester Harbour was put at £983,389, compared with an average of £442,857 in the wider area.
In the Gower National Landscape, the average house price was found to be £441,585, compared with a county average of £199,110.
Over the last few years, as buyers have reevaluated their priorities, we have seen a surge in interest in living amongst greenery or nearby access to green space
Properties in the New Forest, the Lake District National Park and the Loch Lomond National Scenic Area were also found to be more than double the price of properties in their wider areas, on average.
In the New Forest, the average price is £800,053, compared with £390,091 in the wider area.
The Lake District National Park commands an average price of £455,711, compared with £223,677 in its surrounding location.
And home buyers in the the Loch Lomond National Scenic Area face paying around £404,637, compared with £188,744 in the wider area.
Frances McDonald, director of research at Savills said: “Over the last few years, as buyers have reevaluated their priorities, we have seen a surge in interest in living amongst greenery or nearby access to green space.”
Savills looked at average selling prices for second-hand homes in the 12 months to October 2023 to make the findings. It used Land Registry figures covering England and Wales, as well as Registers of Scotland figures.
Here are average selling prices of homes in green spaces followed by their wider locations, and the percentage premium to live in green spaces, according to Savills:
National Park, £422,225, £279,171, 51%
National Landscape, £581,121, £392,182, 48%
National Scenic Area, £285,175, £195,529, 46%