Britain’s housing market is developing a stark regional divide, with buyers pushing up prices in cheaper commuter towns around Glasgow and Manchester while some of the country’s most expensive locations continue to slide.
Research by Rightmove shows average asking prices rising fastest in more affordable commuter locations, as buyers look beyond major cities for access to employment centres without the price tag associated with southern England.
Falkirk in Stirlingshire recorded the strongest increase in the analysis, with average asking prices climbing 13.5 per cent to £183,596.
The figures underline the growing premium attached to affordability. Many commuter locations around Glasgow and Manchester offer access to major urban centres at a fraction of the cost of established commuter belts around London, where average asking prices in many areas exceed £500,000.
By contrast, several traditionally sought-after southern markets are weakening.
Haywards Heath in Sussex suffered the largest decline in the analysis, with asking prices falling 4.8 per cent to £461,066. Maidenhead recorded a 3.9 per cent fall, while Bath dropped 3.8 per cent.
The performance of the cities themselves was considerably more subdued.
Glasgow recorded annual asking-price growth of 2.9 per cent to £191,530, while Manchester rose 1.8 per cent to £261,212 and Cardiff increased 1.4 per cent to £285,596.
Birmingham and Bristol both fell 0.6 per cent, to £251,340 and £375,205 respectively.
London remains the major outlier, with average asking prices down 3.1 per cent to £646,451.
Colleen Babcock, a property expert at Rightmove, 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.”
The divergence reflects a broader reassessment of where households want to live after the pandemic. The initial shift towards remote working encouraged buyers to abandon traditional commuter belts altogether. The return to offices and hybrid working is now producing a more complicated pattern: proximity to major employment centres matters again, but affordability remains a powerful constraint.
Ian Harris, president of the National Association of Estate Agents Propertymark, said: “Since the pandemic, we’ve seen an initial reformatting of what many people want and need from the location they choose to live in.
“Initially, we saw many people embrace the concept of working from home and enjoying a lifestyle away from the traditional city commute.
“However, this is now a trend that is starting to swing back, with many people looking for a hybrid location that offers easy commuter access to key cities, while also providing a desirable mix of out-of-city amenities.”
The result is a housing market in which distance from London is increasingly translating into value, while some of Britain’s traditional commuter trophies are losing their pricing power.
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