House prices in the capital now cost 14 times the average salary, according to figures compiled by Hometrack.
The figures revealed that house prices in London remained the highest in country, with half of London properties on the market for £1 million are two-bedroom properties or smaller. The lack of government house building initiatives has pushed up demand, leading to a surge in property prices. Currently, the average house in London has risen by 86 percent since 2009, to an average of £482,000.
Further research conducted by estate agent Savills revealed that in eight of the London boroughs, properties listed at £1 million had an average of fewer than three bedrooms.These included Camden, Hammersmith and Fulham, Tower Hamlets, Islington, Southwark, Wandsworth and Hounslow. The notoriously expensive Kensington and Chelsea was labelled as the least value for money, with an average 1.56 bedrooms for the million pound price tag.
Steep property prices were also noted in Cambridge, Oxford and in Bristol. Oxford property prices have increased by 72 percent, reaching an average of £415,000, similarly in Cambridge the average has surged by 84 percent to £420,600. Bristol real-estate saw prices increase by a slightly smaller 61 percent, at £259,400.
At the other end of the spectrum, house prices in Glasgow, Newcastle and Liverpool have shown minimal inflation. Glasgow prices has risen to 13 percent above its recorded low, to £114,700. Similarly, at £112,700 the average house price in Liverpool is 4.4 times earnings, while Newcastle it is on average 4.8 times earnings at £122,600.
On Wednesday, the Chancellor of the Exchequer announced his first AutumnSstatement. The statement emphasized an investment into the development of infrastructure and house building initiatives to tackle shortages across the country. £2.3 billion has been set aside for the measure, with the hope of the construction of around 100,000 homes nationwide.
Read a summary of the main tenets of the Chancellor’s statement here.