Dreaming of pastures new? what the price of the average London first-time buyer home buys you in other UK cities

The price of the average first home in London has risen by two thirds in five years, with first-time buyers in the capital now paying double that of their UK counterparts.
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Jess Denham24 May 2018

London’s first-time buyers are paying double that of their UK counterparts, with the average price of a first-time buyer home in the capital now standing at a record £420,000, compared to just over £210,000 nationwide.

The price of the average first home in London has risen by two thirds in five years, despite an overall downturn in the city’s property prices, a new Lloyds Bank study has revealed.

The average London first-time buyer is putting down a deposit of nearly £93,000, up more than 60 per cent from 2013, and again more than double that of other first-time buyers across the country.

It is little surprise, therefore, that the number of London first-time buyers has been falling for the past three years, as aspiring homeowners cut their losses and move away in a bid to get a foot on the ladder.

“Despite the recent slowdown in London house prices this latest data shows how expensive it has become to live in the capital, particularly for young people trying to get on the ladder for the first time,” says Andrew Mason, mortgage products director at Lloyds Bank.

“As a result, first-time buyers have to wait until they are 34 before getting their first foot on the property ladder.”

With more and more companies shifting their headquarters outside the capital, it's little surprise that priced-out London buyers are increasingly happy to follow the jobs to pastures new.

The BBC in Salford; the so-called 'brain belt' stretching from Oxford to Cambridge; and the competition between several cities to become the new home of Channel 4 are among the major jobs providers tempting young buyers out of London.

Flick through the gallery above to compare what £420,000 will buy you in London and how much more you'll get for your money in other UK cities.