London house prices: average property values in a third of the capital borough's tipped to reach £1m by 2032

A new forecast predicts average property price growth in every borough over the next 16 years...
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Ruth Bloomfield9 November 2016

By the time 18-month-old Princess Charlotte is in the sixth form, the average price of a home in a third of London boroughs will be £1 million, according to a new forecast.

Property consultants JLL carried out research in an attempt to chart house prices year by year in the capital until 2032.

Across London it finds the average home will be worth £483,968 by the end of this year, and by the same time next year, the figure will have increased to £508,166 — a paper profit of more than £24,000.

Kensington & Chelsea, where high prices dominate, is predicted to see a rise to an average of almost £1.4 million by December next year, earning owners an extra £70,000 in equity, while in Barking & Dagenham, London’s cheapest option, prices are forecast to increase to £433,469, earning owners a tidy £21,000.

In mid-range Lambeth, prices will rise to £553,679 according to the report, giving an equity increase of more than £26,000.

Within five years, by 2021, the report suggests that the average London home will be worth almost £600,000, with prices in the outer boroughs up well over £100,000 on today’s levels, to £516,278.

By 2032, with Crossrail 2 up and running and Heathrow’s new runway having been built — possibly — the average price in more than a third of London boroughs, including Barnet, Hackney, and Haringey, will be more than £1 million.

In Barking and Dagenham, still forecast to be the capital’s least expensive option, average prices will top £518,000.

When it comes to outperforming, meanwhile, Knight Frank has named a trio of areas where it anticipates prices and a combination of transport improvements, regeneration, and currently affordable property will see prices soar:

Tottenham Hale in north-east London and on the proposed Crossrail 2 line; West Ham in east London which has recently been moved into Zone 2 and is close to two Crossrail stations, and Lewisham in the south-east where an extension to the Bakerloo line is proposed.

Picture it: Charlotte and family. The average London house price could hit £1 million when the princess is a sixth former
Getty Images

“These areas are also set to benefit from larger regeneration and redevelopment plans, which are historically aligned with uplifts in pricing,” adds Gráinne Gilmore, the agent’s head of UK residential research.

“In terms of pricing, the residential markets in these areas have outperformed not only Greater London average pricing but also prime central London pricing, buoyed by the ‘ripple effect’ out from central boroughs, and also by the relative value on offer in these areas.”

Tottenham Hale is part of one of London’s largest future regeneration schemes, with 5,000 new homes planned by 2025, and a new £110 million station. It is also by far the most affordable option within a 15-minute train journey of Oxford Circus, with average prices of £301,649.

Other locations with similar commutes include Clapham North (£559,952) and Canonbury (£721,155).

Lewisham is earmarked for the creation of 10,000 new homes, plus improvements to the town centre with new shops and restaurants. Its 20-minute commute to the City, Canary Wharf and the West End is another plus point. And if the Bakerloo line is expanded to Hayes via Lewisham in 2030, the area will get a huge boost.

In West Ham there are 5,700 homes in the planning pipeline within a third of a mile of West Ham station. The area’s recent re-zoning by Transport for London to Zone 2 saves commuters up to £224 per year.