The London exodus: the best areas, new homes and top schools for first-time buyers in Stevenage
Why buy in Stevenage, Hertfordshire
Average first-time buyer spend: £280,660, which would buy a two- or three-bedroom terrace house, or a new two-bedroom flat.
Annual price increase: 2.7 per cent.
Proportion of homes sold to first-time buyers: 19 per cent.
The commute: trains to King’s Cross take 25 minutes; annual season ticket from £4,060.
Schools: it’s a mixed bag, so parents must study catchment areas forensically, but top-rated options, particularly for younger children, include Letchmore Infants’ and Nursery School, Woolenwick Infant & Nursery School and St Margaret Clitherow Roman Catholic Primary School.
What’s new? The finishing touches are being made to Park Place (parkplace-stevenage.co.uk), a pair of buildings containing just over 200 modern town centre apartments.
Super-handy for the station, these homes are priced from £169,995 for a studio flat and £198,000 for a one-bedroom apartment.
The lowdown: an onslaught of house building after the Second World War transformed Stevenage into a badly planned concrete jungle of estates linked by endless roundabouts with a grim pedestrianised town centre.
Mark Bolton, area manager of Geoffrey Matthew Estates, says about seven in 10 of his buyers are moving to the area from London, drawn by Stevenage’s value for money.
First-time buyers tend to be young couples thinking of starting a family.
A modest three-bedroom post-war house would cost around £250,000 to £280,000, while a similar-sized house on a more contemporary private estate would cost around £290,000, to £320,000.
An Edwardian home in the Old Town would come in at £380,000 to £400,000.
“You do pay a premium to live in the Old Town, because of the history and the cafés and bars.”
Stevenage is very much a town of two halves. The Old Town is quite smart but the sprawling New Town lacks any kerb appeal whatsoever.
“The New Town still suffers with very unattractive parts, which really need to be addressed,” says Bolton.
“The council has encouraged a lot of new flats to be built, which is good for Stevenage, but facilities are seriously lacking.”
The good news is that earlier this year a proposed £350 million regeneration of the New Town centre was unveiled, with shops, bars, restaurants, 600 homes and open space.
Planning permission notwithstanding, the eight-year project is expected to start next year.