A new tool juggles postcode, labour costs and extension size to reveal how much you could boost your home’s value per square metre
The average asking price of a London home is now £6,219 per square metre, more than twice that of homes in England and Wales as a whole, according to a report released today.
Comparing a home's price per square metre to the averages of other properties nearby has long been a go-to measure of value for aspiring buyers, with the UK median home size currently just over 80 square metres — or 893 square feet.
Once you’ve taken the plunge and bought a place, with rising moving costs and years of stagnant house prices making it harder than ever to move on, extending is often the best way to try to add value or create much-needed space.
But will any improvements you make boost your home’s value by as much as you’d hope?
A new House Extension Cost calculator, launched by online property portal Rightmove, estimates the potential value of home extensions by considering asking prices per square metre, based on local postcode averages, and estimated labour costs for small (15m2), medium (25m2) and large (35m2) extensions.
In England and Wales, the top 10 most expensive areas by price per square metre are all in London or within a half-hour commute of the capital.
West “W” and south-west “SW” London postcodes come top of the list, with average prices per square metre of £10,427 and £9,192 respectively. Kensington W8 currently has a 60-bedroom property for sale for £33 million, while good schools, open green spaces and period homes attract well-heeled buyers to south-west London areas such as Chelsea and Fulham. Old St James's Vicarage, a Gothic Revival property in Maxwell Road, SW6, is currently for sale for £7.5 million.
North-west “NW” and north “N” postcodes have average prices respectively of £8,398 and £7,238 per square metre, coming third and fourth on the list. Homes on the market in these areas in recent months have included a record-breaking £75 million mansion in St John's Wood NW8, and a 10-bedroom Hollywood-style mega mansion for sale for £40 million near Hampstead Heath in N6.
The only outer London postcodes to feature among the top 10 most expensive areas are Harrow, which has 15-minute trains to Marylebone; Twickenham, 10 miles south-west of central London; riverside Kingston upon Thames, on the Surrey borders with good transport links to central London; and commuter favourite St Albans, only 21 minutes by train from St Pancras International.
https://www.homesandproperty.co.uk/property-news/how-much-value-do-home-extensions-add-new-tool-estimates-the-value-of-home-improvements-a136981.html