by Michael Smith (Veshengro)
More than a quarter of London boroughs do not have a single property for sale for less than the average UK house price (£191,812)
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Bexley flat at £94,995 is the cheapest flat currently for sale in London
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Only 4 out of 32 boroughs can you buy a property in the 0% stamp duty band
With average London property prices currently standing at £530,409, affordability remains a major issue for Londoners. Researchers looked into the cheapest properties currently for sale in each of the 32 London boroughs, and whether it is still possible to buy a property in the capital for less than the average UK house price of £191,812.
In nine out of 32 London boroughs, more than a quarter (28%), it is impossible to find a single property currently on the market for less than the average UK house price of just under £192,000 (according to monthly Land Registry Property Index).
The figures also reveal that Bexley is the only borough where you can buy a property for less than £100,000, with a studio flat currently on the market for just £94,995. While, in Tower Hamlets, there are no properties on the market for less than £250,000. In the latter case we are talking about a London borough that was once to more than 90% working class and accommodation was predominantly rented, more often than not from the local council or, when it still existed, the London County Council, later the Greater London Council.
Looking at stamp duty bands shows that in just four out of 32 (12.5%) London boroughs is it possible to buy a property exempt from stamp duty. (0% stamp duty band is: £0 - £125,000). While, in almost half of the Capital’s boroughs, the most affordable property for sale today is a studio flat, which are typically just 100-110 sq ft in size, compared to the average UK one bed flat, which measures 495 sq ft.
And still we are being told by government that there are affordable homes to be found in the Capital. The term “affordable” is also rather questionable because the question if, “affordable by who?” Definitely not by essential workers and others on a low(er) income. The members of the British government most certainly do not live in the real world, probably not even on this Planet, when they talk about “affordable homes”. Most of them simply are not affordable to all but the rich. And rented properties are no different there either.
© 2016
