Tories Streets Ahead of Labour in the Property Stakes

Online, April 26, 2010 (Newswire.com) - The latest research released from property website Zoopla.co.uk shows the Conservative party as the runaway winner in the British property value stakes. Average house prices in Tory-controlled areas now stand at £257,518, followed by Lib Dem constituencies where the average home is worth £228,880, whilst Labour comes in a distant third at £168,112, with property values in areas under their control at almost 20% below the national average.

• Property values in Tory constituencies £89,500 higher than Labour on average
• Average house prices in Tory constituencies £257,500 vs. £168,000 for Labour
• Lib Dem seats show highest growth in property values over the past 5 years
• Gordon Brown's own constituency amongst the lowest property values in UK

The Zoopla.co.uk research also reveals that Labour-controlled constituencies have experienced the lowest gains in property values since they came to power in 1997, with house price growth in areas under their control up 177% over the 13 year period compared to 179% in Tory areas and an impressive 190% in areas under Lib Dem control.

As for the party leaders own constituencies, the average property value in Gordon Brown's Kirkcaldy and Cowdenbeath seat is £120,910, well below both the average for his party and the national average. Average property prices in Witney, the Oxfordshire seat of David Cameron, stand at almost 2.5 times that figure at £289,686, well above the national average (£209,101) whilst in Nick Clegg's Sheffield Hallam constituency, the average home would set you back £219,136.

In terms of the total current value of residential property located in areas controlled by each party, the Tories and Labour come out almost exactly neck and neck at £1.9 trillion each, despite Labour's significant advantage of 11.7m homes in areas under their control compared to only 7.2m homes in Conservative areas. The total value of the 2.2m homes in areas under the control of the Liberal Democrats stands at £0.5 trillion.

Nicholas Leeming of Zoopla.co.uk, commented: "The election outcome may be unclear for now, but it is clear that the Tories rule in the property stakes with average property values in their constituencies significantly above those in Labour controlled areas. Interestingly, despite the fact that there are far fewer homes in areas under their control today, the Tories still have an equal share of the UK's property wealth, due largely to their strong presence in affluent rural areas and the south east of England in particular."

Average property values in each party's constituencies (http://blog.zoopla.co.uk/2010/04/15/election-2010-political-party-property-values/ )
Average property values in each leader's constituency (http://blog.zoopla.co.uk/2010/04/15/election-2010-political-party-property-values/ )

Source: Zoopla.co.uk.