The so-called ‘Waitrose Effect’ can boost the price of a home even further, by an average of almost £40,000 and even discount retailers can help drive house prices in some areas.
Living near a supermarket can bag you a £22,000 bonus on your home, research from Lloyds Bank reveals.
The so-called ‘Waitrose Effect’ can boost the price of a home even further, by an average of almost £40,000 and even discount retailers can help drive house prices in some areas.
In some areas properties close to a Waitrose store receive an average boost of £38,666 (or 10%) higher than the wider town in which they are located (£425,428 v. £386,763) – the highest amongst the national supermarkets.
And properties near a Sainsbury’s, Marks and Spencer, Tesco or Iceland also command the highest house price premiums - Sainsbury’s (£27,939), Marks and Spencer (£27,182), Tesco (£22,072) and Iceland (£20,034).
The lowest house price premiums are in areas with an Asda (£5,026), Lidl (£3,926) or Aldi store (£1,333).
Mike Songer, Lloyds Bank mortgage director, said: "Our findings back-up the so-called ‘Waitrose effect’. There is definitely a correlation between the price of your home and whether it’s close to a major supermarket or not. Our figures show that the amount added to the value of your home can be even greater if located next to a brand which is perceived as upmarket. Of course, there are many other drivers of house prices beyond having a supermarket on your doorstep, but our research suggests that it is a strong factor."
The data shows that this ‘supermarket bounce’ is not necessarily just confined to those areas which have a Waitrose, Sainsbury's or Marks and Spencer's located in them. There are several locations with a discount supermarket store where average house prices trade at a premium.
For example, the CH60 postcode area of Heswall has both an Aldi and an Iceland store and the average house price is £118,000 higher than in the overall Wirral area. Similarly, in Harbourne, which also has an Iceland store, homes cost on average £101,599 more than in the whole of Birmingham. The average price of houses close to a Lidl store in West Ealing is £650,702, compared to £542,724 in the wider Ealing area; a premium of £107,978.
