With UK homes costing on average £300 per sq ft, space for a double bed sets back buyers a cosy £8,280
A standard size double bed takes up 27.6 sq ft, costing buyers on average a whopping £8,280
Hartlepool is the cheapest area to buy when looking at pounds per square foot at £118 compared to Kensington and Chelsea at £1,373
Homes in Inverclyde have seen the biggest percentage increase outside of London up 13.2 per cent since 2023
Terraced homes offer best value for money, ranging between £225 for a 2-bed and £235 for a 4-bed
The average price per square foot ranges between £145 in the North East and £585 in London
Historical seaside resorts and port towns offer the lowest prices, with Portsmouth, Plymouth, Dover, Great Yarmouth and Queenborough sitting at 38 to 45 per cent below their regional averages
Under embargo until 00.01 Thursday, 10 October 2024, London: Zoopla, one of the UK’s leading property websites, reveals that the average UK home now costs £300 per square foot. This means that a standard sized double bed costs UK homeowners on average, £8,280. Hartlepool has the lowest cost per square foot at £118 or £3,257 for a double bed and Kensington and Chelsea the moProperties in Inverclyde have seen the biggest percentage increase in price per square foot outside of London over last year, increasing by 13.2 percent from £140 to £160. Areas like Inverclyde have seen their popularity grow in recent years due to their affordability and close proximity to major cities and vital infrastructure.
In a market where a large majority of buyers are experiencing challenges when it comes to affordability, closely assessing the price per square foot of different types of properties can help in finding a home that offers the best value for money.
Cost per square foot varies based on type
The research shows that terraced homes offer the best value for money with the price of a square foot ranging from £225 for a two bed to £235 for a four bed property. Whilst detached and semi-detached homes come with a higher price per square foot, they do tend to offer more space and external features, such as off-street parking, something which should be taken into consideration by potential buyers.
Table 1: Cost per square foot vs type of property
Type of Property | One Bed | Two Bed | Three Bed | Four Bed |
Flat | £255 | £245 | - | - |
Terrace | - | £225 | £225 | £235 |
Semi-detached | - | £270 | £260 | £280 |
Detached | - | - | £300 | £300 |
Source: Zoopla, UK excl. London. Residential resale homes only
Zoopla data shows that, on average, terraced and semi-detached homes with two bedrooms are the same size, at 860 square feet. The difference between an average three bed terraced home and a three bed semi-detached home is 20 square feet - enough to fit an extra desk, something which has become more desirable in recent years due to hybrid working.
However, when we examine the space a terraced home and a semi-detached home with four bedrooms offers, the difference, at 70 square feet, is significant. This amount of space is enough for an extra bathroom, small office or utility room.
There are substantial differences regionally
Whilst property type certainly impacts the cost per square foot of a home, this will also vary by region. The average price per square foot of £585 in London, buyers looking for a home in the capital are very unlikely to find a home priced below the national average.
Those searching for a home in southern England may have little bit more luck finding homes for less than £300/sq ft. It is estimated that a third of the areas in southern England offer homes with average price of £300 or less per square foot. In this area, historical seaside resorts and port towns offer the most affordable homes on £ per square foot basis, up to 45 per cent below the regional average. Areas worth considering for the best value for money are Portsmouth (£230), Plymouth (£180), Dover (£230), Great Yarmouth (£180) and Queenborough (£230).
Outside of southern England, the average price per square foot ranges between £145 (North East) and £240 (West Midlands). However despite these lower costs outside of the capital, there are still areas where buyers will struggle to find a property below the national average. These include some city centres, such as Edinburgh (£410), Birmingham (£420) and York (£370). Those looking to buy in villages near national landscapes (former Areas of Outstanding National Beauty) and national parks such as Bakewell (£360) in the Peak District and Aberdyfi (£330) on the edge of the Eryri National Park in Wales, should also be prepared to pay more than the national average.
Table 2: Average cost per square foot by region
Region | Average £/ sq ft | Average cost of a double bed |
North East | £145 | £4,002 |
Scotland | £175 | £4,830 |
Wales | £200 | £5,520 |
North West | £205 | £5,658 |
Yorkshire and the Humber | £205 | £5,658 |
East Midlands | £225 | £6,210 |
West Midlands | £240 | £6,624 |
South West | £295 | £8,142 |
East of England | £330 | £9,108 |
South East | £375 | £10,350 |
London | £585 | £16,146 |
UK | £300 | £8,280 |
UK Excl London | £260 | £7,176 |
Source: Zoopla
Izabella Lubowiecka, Senior Property Researcher at Zoopla comments: “In many other countries, buyers often pay more attention to floor space and the cost per square meter or foot when searching for their next home and they are right in doing so. Looking at this measurement is a far more logical way to assess value for money, allowing buyers to compare different homes without having to step a foot inside a property.
“A property that comes with an extra bedroom or bathroom might still not have right amount of additional space the buyer is looking for, examining the square footage of a property can help buyers to identify if a property has that space and if the cost per square foot is worth it.”
ENDS
Notes to Editors
Analysis based on asking prices of residential resale homes listed for sale on Zoopla with a known floorspace. Only listings available between April and September 2024 are taken into account. The average prices are stock-adjusted to reflect the value of most common property types in the area.
The average size of a double bed is 27.6 square foot