The property hotspots for bagging the perfect bang in your buck
- Hartlepool has the lowest cost per square foot at £118
Home buyers looking for the ‘best bang for buck’ should consider Hartlepool, according to data released by Zoopla.
The property portal has revealed the cheapest and most expensive property markets based on price per square foot.
It revealed the average UK home now costs £300 per square foot. This means if someone is purchasing a property that is 1,000 square feet in size and sells for £300,000 then the buyer is paying the average £300 per square foot.
Based on the UK average of £300 per square foot, Zoopla estimates that a standard sized double bed takes up £8,280 of space on average.
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The average UK home now costs £300 per square foot, according to Zoopla
The total square footage of the property is reached by totting up the square footage of each room. The square footage of each room is reached by multiplying the length by the width.
Most floorplans will provide the total square footage and square meterage of a property. £1,000 square feet equals 92.9 square metres.
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The seaside town of Hartlepool in County Durham has the lowest cost per square foot at £118, according to Zoopla. This means that a double bed there covers the equivalent of £3,257 of floor space.
Kensington and Chelsea in London was found to be the most expensive at £1,373 per square foot equating to £37,895 for a double bed.
The average price per square foot across London as a whole is a much lower £585 which shows how much prices can vary across the capital.
Outside of the capital, there are still areas where buyers will struggle to find a property below the national average.
There are some city centres, such as Edinburgh where buyers can expect to pay £410 per square foot on average, Birmingham at £420 and York at £370.
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Bargain: Hartlepool is the cheapest area to buy when looking at pounds per square foot at £118
Those looking to buy in villages near national landscapes (former Areas of Outstanding National Beauty) and national parks can also expect to pay above the average £ per square foot.
For example, in the market town of Bakewell in the Derbyshire Dales buyers can expect to pay £360 per square foot on average.
Aberdyfi on the edge of the Eryri National Park in Wales, should also be prepared to pay more than the national average at £330 per square foot.
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Deep pockets: Kensington and Chelsea is the most expensive area in the UK with homes commanding £1,373 per square foot on average
Those searching for a home in southern England may have little bit more luck finding homes for less than £300 per square foot.
Zoopla estimates 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 with an average of £230 per square foot, Plymouth at £180 per square foot and Great Yarmouth at £180 per square foot.
Outside of southern England, the average price per square foot ranges between £145 per square foot in the North East and £240 in the West Midlands.
What types of property offer the best £ per square foot
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.
Terraced and semi-detached homes with two bedrooms are the same size, at 860 square feet, according to Zoopla.
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 examining the space in 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.
Is price per square foot a good measure of value?
Buyers who consider price per square foot often tend to be investors, whether for buy-to-let or developing and selling on.
Although it could be one useful metric for helping you decide between the properties on your shortlist, there is a danger that it could blind you from choosing the home that you actually like the most.
Ultimately, looking at what similar types of properties in the area are selling for should give you a good indication of value without having to obsess about the square footage.
Izabella Lubowiecka, senior property researcher at Zoopla said: ‘In many other countries, buyers often pay more attention to floor space and the cost per square metre 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 the 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.’
