The UK’s fastest growing commuter hotspots where your home could be worth £52,000 more in just a YEAR

THE top UK commuter hotspots where house prices are growing by up to £52,000 in a year have been revealed. Asking prices have surged by as much as 13.5% in just one year as buyers hunt for cheaper homes within reach of major cities. Falkirk in Stirlingshire had the highest price growth in the research, Credit: Alamy Homeowners in Broxbourne, Hertfordshire, have made the biggest cash gain Credit: Alamy And in one London commuter spot, the average property could now be worth tens of thousands of pounds more than it was just 12 months ago. Rightmove crunched the numbers for towns surrounding London, Manchester, Glasgow, Birmingham, Bristol and Cardiff. Sign up for the Money newsletter Thank you! The property website found that affordable locations around Glasgow and Manchester are leading the charge. But at the same time, prices are sliding in some traditionally expensive southern hotspots. Falkirk in Stirlingshire, Scotland, had the highest price growth in the research, at 13.5%, with an average asking price of £183,596. The town is within a commutable distance of Glasgow. Rochdale, Greater Manchester, took second place, with prices rising 8.7% to £238,115. But homeowners in Broxbourne, Hertfordshire, have made the biggest cash gain. Most read in Money (AD) Get free mortgage advice and potentially save THOUSANDS Mortgage Advice Bureau (MAB) is offering Sun readers FREE mortgage advice. *If you click on this link we will earn affiliate revenue The mortgage broker has access to nearly all lenders in the UK, and their independent professionals are here to help find the best deal for first-time buyers, remortgage borrowers, house purchasers, and landlords. Normally, this advice comes at a price. But Sun money readers can use their services for free by using the link below. Schedule your first visit for free mortgage advice Mortgage Advice Bureau Limited. Registered Office: Capital House, Pride Place, Derby. DE24 8QR. Registered in England Number: 3368205 Average asking prices in the London commuter town climbed 8.1% to £654,263. This is a rise of almost £53,000. St Helens, a Manchester commuter town. came fourth after prices jumped 7.8 per cent to £192,570. Meanwhile Port Talbot, within a commutable distance to Cardiff, rounded out the top five with a 7.7 per cent rise to £176,787. The research suggest buyers are looking beyond big cities to get more for their money. Commuter towns can offer cheaper homes, more space and greener surroundings — while still being close enough to travel into the office. And with more firms calling workers back to their desks for at least part of the week, well-connected towns are becoming more attractive. Prices in the six cities studied generally grew more slowly than in their surrounding commuter belts. Average asking prices rose by 2.9% in Glasgow, 1.8% in Manchester and 1.4% in Cardiff. But they fell by 0.6% in Birmingham and Bristol — and tumbled by 3.1% in London. Rightmove property expert Colleen Babcock said: “Our data highlights two very different stories playing out across some of Britain’s commuter markets. “In the more affordable locations around Glasgow and Manchester, asking prices are rising strongly as buyers look for value within reach of major cities. “Meanwhile, some of the more expensive commuter hotspots are seeing prices ease, which could create opportunities for buyers who may previously have been priced out. “For anyone considering a move, it’s a reminder that looking a little further beyond the main city locations can often open up more options and better value for money.” Is your town on the list? House prices in Greenock have gone up by 5.3% Credit: Alamy House prices in St Helens near Manchester have risen by 7.8% Credit: Alamy Buying a home in Penarth puts you in commuting distance of Cardiff Credit: Alamy These are the 15 fastest-growing commuter hotspots in Rightmove’s study: Falkirk, near Glasgow — £183,596, up 13.5% Rochdale, near Manchester — £238,115, up 8.7% Broxbourne, near London — £654,263, up 8.1% St Helens, near Manchester — £192,570, up 7.8% Port Talbot, near Cardiff — £176,787, up 7.7% Wishaw, near Glasgow — £140,127, up 7% Wigan, near Manchester — £193,347, up 6.2% Stalybridge, near Manchester — £265,378, up 5.6% Greenock, near Glasgow — £135,151, up 5.3% Hamilton, near Glasgow — £174,869, up 5.3% Wolverhampton, near Birmingham — £230,737, up 5.2% Barry, near Cardiff — £261,859, up 5.2% East Kilbride, near Glasgow — £174,348, up 5.1% Dumbarton, near Glasgow — £168,045, up 5% Penarth, near Cardiff — £432,414, up 4.7% Price drops But it’s not all good news for homeowners. Some of the country’s pricier commuter hotspots have seen asking prices go into reverse. Haywards Heath in West Sussex suffered the biggest drop, with prices falling 4.8 per cent to £461,066. Maidenhead followed with a 3.9 per cent decline, taking its average asking price to £571,686. And Bath came third after prices slipped by 3.8 per cent to £508,109. The 15 biggest falls were: Haywards Heath, near London — £461,066, down 4.8% Maidenhead, near London — £571,686, down 3.9% Bath, near Bristol — £508,109, down 3.8% Leamington Spa, near Birmingham — £369,612, down 3.3% Reading, near London — £377,211, down 2.9% Billericay, near London — £558,087, down 2.8% Yate, near Bristol — £331,921, down 2.3% Slough, near London — £405,182, down 2.2% Chelmsford, near London — £402,836, down 2.1% Basingstoke, near London — £353,642, down 1.9% Woking, near London — £509,550, down 1.7% Tonbridge, near London — £483,362, down 1.5% Redhill, near London — £426,481, down 1.3% Brentwood, near London — £559,908, down 1.2% Caerphilly, near Cardiff — £251,142, down 1.2% While that may sting for sellers, falling prices could hand hopeful buyers a chance to snap up a home in an area that was previously out of reach. Ian Harris, president of NAEA Propertymark, said the pandemic had shaken up what buyers wanted from their homes. At first, remote working sent many people searching for properties farther away from city centres. Now, as hybrid working becomes the norm, buyers want the best of both worlds — easy access to the office plus more space and local amenities. Ian said: “Many people are looking for a hybrid location that offers easy commuter access to key cities, while also providing a desirable mix of out-of-city amenities.” Rightmove’s study only covered commuter areas around the six selected cities, rather than every commuter location in Britain. The figures are also based on asking prices — what sellers hope to receive — rather than the final amount buyers actually pay. House prices have also risen in Wolverhampton Credit: Alamy Stalybridge near Manchester made up the top ten Credit: Alamy Comment now