Depending where you live in the country, the amount of money that you'll require to buy your first flat or apartment will vary greatly. Where is the best value place in the UK to buy, in 2019?
Based on the Land Registry data from February to August 2019, we've taken a look at the average sale value for a flat or apartment in each postcode area of the UK, where there have been 20 or more sales over that period.
The data shows that Wigan is the most affordable postcode area of the UK in which to buy your first flat or apartment, with an average sale value per property of £125,350.
Birmingham comes in around the middle in value terms, with an average sale price of £185.002. Anyone who lives in the South East or in the London area in particular will require much deeper pockets: the most expensive area was Western Central London during this period of 2019: incredibly you'd need almost a million pounds to get a flat or apartment there, which would surely rule out the vast majority of first-time buyers!
Below is a table that shows all the data - if you live close to one of the cheaper areas and are currently somewhere more expensive, perhaps you'll even consider relocating in order to take that first step on the property ladder!
Rank | Postcode Area | Sales in period | Average Sale Value |
1 | Wigan | 20 | £125,350 |
2 | Dudley | 121 | £134,521 |
3 | Doncaster | 61 | £135,304 |
4 | Telford | 37 | £138,384 |
5 | Huddersfield | 53 | £140,311 |
6 | Halifax | 54 | £141,997 |
7 | Northampton | 378 | £142,011 |
8 | Stoke-on-Trent | 125 | £145,950 |
9 | Taunton | 214 | £146,276 |
10 | Leicester | 335 | £149,523 |
11 | Wakefield | 48 | £149,925 |
12 | Crewe | 100 | £152,296 |
13 | Peterborough | 351 | £152,388 |
14 | Cleveland | 57 | £152,922 |
15 | Sunderland | 26 | £153,206 |
16 | Bolton | 80 | £156,322 |
17 | Newcastle upon Tyne | 686 | £156,854 |
18 | Oldham | 64 | £156,912 |
19 | Preston | 201 | £156,943 |
20 | Nottingham | 401 | £157,024 |
21 | Blackburn | 54 | £157,091 |
22 | Liverpool | 755 | £157,246 |
23 | Wolverhampton | 92 | £157,886 |
24 | Hereford | 63 | £160,585 |
25 | Carlisle | 68 | £160,784 |
26 | Darlington | 50 | £163,982 |
27 | Sheffield | 447 | £164,291 |
28 | Norwich | 513 | £166,721 |
29 | Newport | 102 | £167,425 |
30 | Derby | 127 | £167,747 |
31 | Bradford | 144 | £168,044 |
32 | Colchester | 524 | £168,556 |
33 | Swindon | 428 | £168,967 |
34 | Walsall | 170 | £169,770 |
35 | Ipswich | 349 | £170,082 |
36 | Cardiff | 714 | £170,531 |
37 | Durham | 28 | £172,238 |
38 | Leeds | 841 | £174,506 |
39 | Luton | 409 | £175,302 |
40 | Portsmouth | 1146 | £175,507 |
41 | Swansea | 134 | £176,330 |
42 | Plymouth | 365 | £176,632 |
43 | Hull | 118 | £177,857 |
44 | Shrewsbury | 159 | £180,107 |
45 | York | 435 | £181,193 |
46 | Manchester | 2167 | £181,367 |
47 | Salisbury | 191 | £181,751 |
48 | Coventry | 618 | £182,306 |
49 | Canterbury | 691 | £184,014 |
50 | Birmingham | 1782 | £185,002 |
51 | Blackpool | 135 | £185,165 |
52 | Stockport | 453 | £185,531 |
53 | Chester | 313 | £186,451 |
54 | Dorchester | 303 | £187,149 |
55 | Lancaster | 191 | £187,630 |
56 | Llandudno | 155 | £191,446 |
57 | Lincoln | 77 | £193,019 |
58 | Rochester | 579 | £193,235 |
59 | Exeter | 537 | £195,040 |
60 | Warrington | 253 | £196,593 |
61 | Southampton | 925 | £197,117 |
62 | Gloucester | 589 | £199,109 |
63 | Southend-on-Sea | 729 | £200,491 |
64 | Milton Keynes | 514 | £203,190 |
65 | Worcester | 210 | £212,884 |
66 | Torquay | 441 | £214,599 |
67 | Dartford | 647 | £216,219 |
68 | Stevenage | 548 | £220,046 |
69 | Romford | 739 | £220,442 |
70 | Tunbridge Wells | 920 | £225,431 |
71 | Truro | 317 | £226,389 |
72 | Harrogate | 155 | £231,640 |
73 | Chelmsford | 966 | £232,360 |
74 | Bristol | 1710 | £233,180 |
75 | Redhill | 939 | £236,092 |
76 | Bournemouth | 1521 | £236,198 |
77 | Reading | 1399 | £239,227 |
78 | Oxford | 539 | £241,184 |
79 | Bath | 408 | £243,101 |
80 | Brighton | 1919 | £252,199 |
81 | Ilford | 520 | £252,882 |
82 | Guildford | 1027 | £252,887 |
83 | Hemel Hempstead | 649 | £253,247 |
84 | Sutton | 459 | £275,147 |
85 | Southall | 523 | £276,810 |
86 | Croydon | 764 | £281,200 |
87 | Cambridge | 344 | £282,641 |
88 | Enfield | 600 | £289,040 |
89 | St Albans | 470 | £302,795 |
90 | Slough | 708 | £319,756 |
91 | Watford | 620 | £320,936 |
92 | Bromley | 579 | £328,629 |
93 | Harrow | 825 | £353,532 |
94 | Kingston upon Thames | 1247 | £355,318 |
95 | Twickenham | 946 | £391,147 |
96 | East London | 3336 | £454,500 |
97 | South East London | 3449 | £493,502 |
98 | North London | 2349 | £499,024 |
99 | North West London | 1676 | £614,993 |
100 | South West London | 3427 | £702,416 |
101 | East Central London | 239 | £852,466 |
102 | West London | 1616 | £966,331 |
103 | Western Central London | 102 | £969,901 |
Figures derived from data produced by Land Registry © Crown copyright 2019.