Revealed: Britain’s most expensive streets

Discover which addresses have made it into our top 10. Spoiler alert: a typical home on the most expensive street could set you back a cool £29.9m.

Kensington Palace Gardens has been crowned Britain’s most expensive street for the 13th year running.

With an average property price of just under £29.9m, the street is well known for its embassies and billionaire residents.

It also counts Kensington Palace, home to the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, among its neighbours.

In fact, all of the top 10 most expensive streets in the country are in London.

And all of the 10 most expensive streets outside of London are within commuting distance of the capital too.

There are now a whopping 11,673 streets in Britain where the average home is valued at £1m or more, our Rist List for 2021 shows.

What are the 10 most expensive streets outside London?

Titlarks Hill in Ascot, Berkshire, where the average home costs £8.4m, is the most expensive street outside of London, knocking Leatherhead off the top spot.

And Montrose Gardens in Leatherhead, Surrey, located within the exclusive Crown Estate, is the second most expensive place to buy a home outside of the capital.

Meanwhile, 5 of the top 10 most expensive streets outside of London are in Virginia Water, Surrey.

They include Portnall Rise, the third most expensive street outside of the capital.

How many expensive streets are there in your region?

Unsurprisingly, London is home to the highest number of streets where the average property is worth £1m or more.

It is closely followed by the south east, with the east of England coming in third place.

At the other end of the scale, Wales has only 9 streets with homes that cost an average of at least £1m.

Which towns have the most million-pound streets?

Guildford took the top spot for the town with the most streets on which homes are valued at an average of £1m or more.

It was followed by other towns within commuting distance of London, including Reading, Sevenoaks and Leatherhead.

Altrincham in Cheshire, an area popular with Premiership footballers, was the only town in a northern region to make it into the top 10.

And it was also the only town in the list not to be within commuting distance of London.

Key takeaways

• Kensington Palace Gardens has been crowned Britain’s most expensive street for the 13th year running.

• All of the top 10 most expensive streets are in London. And all of the 10 most expensive streets outside of London are within commuting distance of the capital.

• There are now 11,673 streets in Britain where the average home is valued at £1m or more.

by Blackstones

UK house prices hit record high

The value of the average home has increased by £44 per day in the last 6 months alone.

UK house prices have hit a record high of £235,000 as sales are agreed at their fastest pace for 5 years.

The average home in the UK has increased in value by £44 per day in the past 6 months alone.

This is up from £30 per day between July 2020 and January 2021.

Meanwhile, the time it takes to agree a sale on a home is now less than 30 days, according to our latest House Price Index report.

House prices climbed by 6.1% in the last year – more than double the rate of annual house price growth seen in August 2020.

At a regional level, house prices rose the most in Wales at 9.8%, followed by Northern Ireland at 8.4% and north west England at 8%.

And in terms of cities, Liverpool continued to lead the way. House prices in the city jumped by 9.8%, followed by Manchester and Sheffield at 8.1% and 7.6% respectively.

At the other end of the scale, house price growth continued to lag the national average in London, with property prices edging ahead by just 2.2% in the last year.

The gap between house price growth in Wales and London was one of the widest seen in the past 3 years.

The pandemic-induced search for space continued to fuel house hunting, with buyer demand still 35% higher than the average for the past 5 years.

There was a noticeable uptick in the number of buyers in London, with demand rising by 14% during the past month as many return to office life.

Houses continue to be more popular than flats, with buyer interest in houses up 25% in the capital compared with 6% for flats.

Meanwhile, the fast-approaching deadline for the stamp duty holiday in England and Northern Ireland at the end of this month does not appear to have dampened buyers’ enthusiasm.

The housing market is moving at its fastest pace for 5 years.

The time between listing a property and agreeing a sale has consistently averaged less than 30 days each month since May. Normally, it takes 40 days at this time of year.

And the acute shortage of homes for sale continues, with levels 28% lower so far this year compared with the average for 2020.

What could this mean for you?

First-time buyers

Despite the shortage of homes for sale, there is some good news for people taking their first step onto the property ladder.

There’s evidence that some landlords are selling up. Some 8% of homes that are currently listed for sale have been previously rented, rising to 13% in London. That’s up from a UK-wide average of just 3% 2 years ago.

And this in turn could boost choice for first-time buyers, who are typically interested in buying the same types of homes as landlords.

Also, if you are happy to purchase a flat, you are not only likely to face less competition, but you could also be in a stronger position to negotiate on the price.

Even so, the market remains fast-moving. It pays to get all your ducks in a row before you start your property search, so that you will be in a position to move quickly when you see something you like.

Home-movers

People moving up the property ladder continue to face the challenge of being both a seller and a buyer.

The good news is that if you have a family home to put on the market, you are likely to be able to secure both a top price and a quick sale.

The downside is that you are also likely to face stiff competition from other potential buyers for your next home. Meanwhile, the shortage of homes for sale may mean you have limited choice.

If you need to coordinate the sale of your current home and buy your next one, speak to a local estate agent. They’ll give you a good sense of the pace of your local housing market and whether there are currently many properties up for sale that meet your criteria.

Depending on how quickly the market is moving, you may want to have an offer accepted on a home you like before listing your current one for sale.

by Blackstones