Where to buy in London in 2018: the best areas for home buyers to upsize from a flat to a house

With average property prices more than double the rest of the country, it's no surprise that central London living is predominantly for flat dwellers.

Last year, more than half of all property sales in 18 of London’s 33 boroughs were for flats. In the heart of the City, 99 per cent of properties sold within the Square Mile were apartments.

So where should second steppers and families looking to stay in London start their search when looking to upsize to a house? Well, it depends on the type of house you're looking for.

New research from eMoov analyses the housing stock across Greater London to determine which boroughs have the highest numbers of terrace houses, semi-detached or fully-detached homes - and where budgets will stretch the furthest.

1. WHERE TO START YOUR SEARCH FOR TERRACE HOUSES

Source: Emoov/ONS

Terrace houses make up half of the housing stock sold in the north-east London boroughs of Waltham Forest, where they sell for an average of £477,000, and Redbridge, where they come with an average price tag of £444,000.

Founder of emoov.co.uk, Russell Quirk, says: "Waltham Forest’s position means the borough is almost split in two, not only by the North Circular but in terms of its housing stock. While the outer expanses are home to your typical residential developments and open spaces, the south side of the borough is more urban and built up."

The streets around Blackhorse Road station are lined with neat terrace houses, originally built for local factory workers and now popular with today’s first-time buyers and second steppers. A budget of about £500,000 will buy a three-bedroom house.

Leyton, Leytonstone and Chingford are also popular areas for buyers to move to after huge price rises in Walthamstow in recent years forced many buyers to look further out.

Last year, one of the most popular home buying routes took upsizers from Redbridge in east London to Epping, where two-bedroom houses come with a £450,000 price tag.

​There is only one borough in London where terrace houses make up the majority of property purchases - east London’s Barking and Dagenham.

The borough regularly records the cheapest average property prices in Greater London and, at £315,000, terrace houses are selling for around half the London average house price.

Huge regeneration plans are coming to fruition in the borough, especially in Barking town centre, which is in Zone 4 on the District line with a direct journey to the City.

By 2021, a riverside district with almost 11,000 homes will be connected to the Overground network, too - bringing a lot more flats to the area.

A three-bedroom townhouse near to the regeneration site and Upney train station is currently on the market for £450,000.

​Terrace houses are far more rare and exceed the million-pound mark in central London’s Islington, Camden, City of Westminster and Hammersmith and Fulham.

The most expensive terrace houses are in west London’s famously well-heeled enclave, Kensington and Chelsea, where they average £2.2 million.

2. WHERE TO START YOUR SEARCH FOR SEMI-DETACHED HOUSES

Source: Emoov/ONS

Semi-detached houses are significantly less common than terrace houses in the capital and are most commonly found in south-east London’s Bexley, where they made up 34 per cent of the housing stock sold last year.

Bexley is another of London’s more affordable boroughs, with semi-detached houses averaging £430,000.

The borough's most well-known area is now Abbey Wood, which is getting a significant boost thanks to the upcoming Crossrail station. Once the Elizabeth line route opens, residents will be able to reach the West End in less than half an hour and Heathrow in 51 minutes.

A similar percentage of terrace homes were sold across the river for a similar price of £436,000, in neighbouring Havering.

This borough is also home to a stop on the high-speed Crossrail network in its main town, Romford, where three-bedroom semi-detached houses can be found for £500,000.

Less than two miles away in Chadwell Heath, similar homes sell for around £50,000 less.

A third of properties sold in south-west London’s Kingston upon Thames were semi-detached houses. Here, this type of home is significantly more expensive, averaging £670,000, so it’s little surprise that the total number of sales in a price-sensitive market were less than half of those in Bexley and Havering - a total of 536 for the year.

For £685,000, it's possible to buy a charming three-bedroom semi-detached house moments from Richmond Park, and a short walk to Kingston town centre and the Thames.

At the other end of the spectrum, semi-detached houses sold for more than £2 million in the City of Westminster and more than £3 million in Kensington and Chelsea.

3. WHERE TO START YOUR SEARCH FOR DETACHED HOUSES

Source: Emoov/ONS

In terms of availability, south-east London’s Bromley would be a good place to start for those dreaming of a detached house.

"As the largest borough in London, Bromley offers both an urban and rural lifestyle for London homebuyers moving up the ladder from the inside out," says Quirk.

This borough had the highest proportion of sales for this property type, yet the numbers still aren't huge with detached houses accounting for just 16 per cent of total sales.

With great transport links and well-rated schools, Bromley is popular with families looking for big gardens, but average house prices vary across the borough.

For example, a four-bedroom detached house in Biggin Hill costs about £500,000, which rises to £750,000 in Orpington, and up to £800,000 in Beckenham. Meanwhile, in neighbouring West Wickham, five-bedroom detached house will set you back about £830,000.

​The next most populous area for detached houses is west London’s Hillingdon, where Heathrow Airport is located.

Hillington will also be on the high-speed Elizabeth Line, with stations at Hayes & Harlington and West Drayton, plus a spur to the airport. There, detached homes sell for an average of a little more than £800,000.

Average house prices of less than £600,000 can only be found in two boroughs - Barking and Dagenham and Bexley, but they are few and far between.

In half of London boroughs, detached houses top the £1 million mark.