Crossrail winners: 20 London first-time buyer hotspots with average house prices as low as £200k

On the fringes of Essex, Harold Wood is more village than town but it’s two station stops from the Elizabeth line eastern terminus.

When the east-west link launches later this year, this budget-friendly spot will be only 40 minutes from the West End and 32 minutes from Canary Wharf — a fact not lost on savvy first timers.

According to the Hamptons International study, 74 per cent of homes sold in the Harold Wood area in the last year went to first timers who paid £219,310 for a home on average, or about half the average spend of a first-time buyer in London.

Property prices in Harold Wood have grown by 12 per cent over the last two years.

John Hollis, sales negotiator at estate agents Delaney’s Harold Wood, says many first-time buyers renting in east London are moving further out to find better value. “Most work in London and want easy access into the city. It’s going to be a lot quicker with Crossrail,” he adds.

Most homes in the area are post-war. One-bedroom flats sell for £210,000-£220,000. A two-bedroom maisonette would come in at about £230,000, while a three-bedroom semi would be £325,000-£350,000.

Harold Wood has a park, leisure centre, and local shops, pubs, and restaurants, but Hollis admits amenities are basic. “It is more of a village than a big town,” he says. But it is growing.

Also seeing strong interest from young buyers is Northolt, a residential suburb in deepest west London in Zone 5.

According to today’s study, first-time buyers represent 73 per cent of all Northolt sales over the last two years, at an average price of £240,630. This kind of budget would buy a two-bedroom purpose-built flat.

Bromley, on the borders of Kent, has seen 72 per cent of sales to first-time buyers, who pay an average £388,520.

This means they can skip the flat stage altogether and buy a two-or three-bedroom house.

First-time buyers with more money to spend are also eyeing less expensive areas of north London with great interest.

Crouch End, Hornsey, Cricklewood, Willesden, Upper Holloway and Archway have all seen substantial numbers able to pay more than £500,000 for a first property.