Commuting times will be slashed but what impact is the new Elizabeth line having on house prices?
Crossrail, a new railway line spanning from Reading and Heathrow in the west to Shenfield and Abbey Wood in the east, will connect towns in Berkshire and Buckinghamshire to Essex and south-east London, via central London, by offering a regular and rapid service which will integrate with the existing Underground network; an attractive proposition for many commuters.
But aside from cut the journey times to key destinations such as the City of London, Canary Wharf and Heathrow Airport, the new service is also driving up residential property prices along the route, but which areas have benefitted the most?
Asking prices for homes along the newly named Elizabeth line – already nicknamed the Lizzie line – have rocketed by more than a fifth since 2014 even though the new Crossrail route is not due to open until next year, while the full service will not be operational until December 2019.
Prices have increased by an average of 22% from £344,242 in 2014 to £420,798 in 2016, compared to an average 14% growth for surrounding local authority areas and a 13% rise for Greater London.
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Of the 33 stations surveyed along the route, 28 have seen average property prices increases in the same postcode sector outpace the average house price growth for the surrounding local authority areas – 14% – over the past two years.
Homes in Abbey Wood, located to the east of London, have seen the greatest price increases.
Property prices in Abbey Wood – Zone 4 – are up 47% from £197,077 to £288,789, thanks largely to the fact that the journey time to central London will be cut by almost 30 minutes once the new line is up and running.
House prices in Forest Gate and West Drayton have both seen house prices increase by 46% over the past two years.
In Forest gate prices have risen from £330,680 to £483,362, while in West Drayton they are up from £249,790 to £363,849.
Towards the west of London, properties in the Burnham area have surged by 40%, followed by Slough at 34% and Maidenhead at 32%.
The most expensive area on the new route is Paddington, where the average price of a home is just over £1 million.
To the east of London, properties close to Shenfield are the most expensive (£659,675), and to the west, Langley costs the most (£589,157).
Despite the fact that we are still three years away from the launch of the full service, it is clear that the Crossrail effect is already having a positive impact on house prices near stations on the Elizabeth Line, and the signs are that prices may grow further between now and the service becoming fully operational in December 2019.