Superstitious house-hunters avoid unlucky number 13

  • Almost a third of Brits (30 per cent) would try to avoid buying a property at number 13

  • 24 per cent would expect a number 13 property to have a lower asking price

  • Door number 13 is typically £8,974 cheaper than the average UK property

  • Nearly a quarter (23 per cent) would not complete, exchange or move into a property on Friday 13th

On what is widely considered one of the unluckiest days of the year, Friday 13th, new research from Zoopla reveals that nearly a third of Brits (30 per cent) would be less likely to buy a property at number 13, and nearly a quarter (24 per cent) would expect a property at this address to have a lower asking price than other door numbers.

Zoopla also analysed the average value of properties by their door numbers and found that homes at number 13 are typically £8,974 cheaper than the current average UK property (valued at £300,012).

The research also shows that almost half of Brits (43 per cent) consider themselves to be superstitious. Indeed, these notions appear to affect some when it comes to their property purchase decisions, with nearly a quarter (23 per cent) of respondents admitting that they would not exchange or complete on, or even move into a property on Friday 13th.

However, the superstitions don’t stop there. Almost half of Brits (46 per cent) admit to having a lucky number, and a further 19 per cent would be more likely to buy a property if it featured their favoured digits. Seven is the nation’s most popular lucky number (20 per cent) but, perhaps surprisingly, number 13 comes in second place, deemed lucky by nine per cent of the nation.

Although not necessarily in line with Brits’ superstitions, the number of a property does appear to influence its price. Zoopla’s data reveals that properties at number one tend to be the most expensive, valued at an average of £319,318, while number 13 comes in at 58th place at £291,038.

Lawrence Hall, spokesperson for Zoopla comments: “While superstitions might weigh heavily on the minds of some, in a year with not one but two Friday 13ths – the second of which will be in October – there could be a real opportunity for those not suffering from triskaidekaphobia to secure a property bargain. Our research shows that properties at number 13 are around 3.03 per cent cheaper than the average UK property, which could provide a significant saving on homes with high asking prices.”

Top 10 most expensive property numbers

Rank

Number

Average property value (£)

1

1

£319,318

2

100

£311,107

3

2

£308,468

4

3

£304,607

5

70

£303,632

6

4

£301,709

7

93

£300,727

8

5

£300,560

9

55

£300,261

10

79

£297,978

Source: Zoopla, January 2017

Top 10 lucky numbers

Rank

Lucky Number

Percentage

1

7

20%

2

13

9%

3

3

7%

4

8

7%

5

4

6%

6

1

6%

7

5

5%

8

9

5%

9

6

4%

10

2

2%

Source: Zoopla, November 2016

- Ends -

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