UK Apartments Cost More Than Semi-Detached Houses

London, UK, March 31, 2016 (Newswire.com) - In the UK, people purchasing new homes are paying almost £20,000 more for an apartment than a semi-detached house.

According to a study conducted by Halifax, this could provide a reason for first-time buyers’ lack of appetite for apartments, instead favouring semi-detached homes on account of lower prices.

Other results revealed that the average price of a UK apartment has increased by over £80,000 since property prices plummeted towards the end of 2008, going from £150,000 to just under £240,000, an increase of just under 60% (as at the end of 2015). The average price of all residential property types has also increased by around 40% over the same period.

However, the rise has not affected all types of properties equally as detached homes recorded the smallest rise at just 20% over the past seven years, while terraced and semi-detached houses saw price rises of 38% and 34% respectively since 2008.

The high prices being paid for London apartments have had a significant impact on national averages as result of more apartments being sold in the capital and at the higher end of the market. However, without taking results found in the capital city into account, terraced houses would have greatest price increase at 31%, closely followed by semi-detached houses at 29%.

Semi-detached and terraced houses have remained the most popular property types amongst buyers, and increasingly so for first time buyers. Whilst it might be expected that buying an apartment is a more suitable and typical first step onto the housing ladder, more and more first time buyers are instead opting for semi-detached houses.

The average national cost of an apartment is £120,000, below the current lowest stamp duty threshold in the North of England, Wales and Yorkshire and the Humber, and costs between £120,000 and £145,000 in the North West, West Midlands, East Midlands and Scotland.

Whilst the average cost of an apartment is lower than any the majority of other property types across the UK, a London apartment will cost, on average, £385,000.

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