The UK towns to have been earmarked for city status as part of the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee celebrations could see house prices boosted by as much as £37,000 in the year that follows, according to research from Boomin.
Boomin analysed local house price data for the nine towns across Britain to have previously been awarded city status during the Millennium competition in 2000 and the Queen’s Golden and Diamond Jubilees in 2002 and 2012.
The research shows that on average across these nine areas, house prices climbed by a respectable 12% in the year that followed their newfound city status.
Having obtained city status as part of the Golden Jubilee celebrations, house prices in Newport climbed 29% over the following year, with Preston also seeing 26% growth, while Brighton property values jumped 19% in a single year following the Millenium competition.
So what could new found city status mean for the next batch of British towns where their local housing markets are concerned?
Boomin looked at the current cost of buying and what the average 12% boost would mean for homeowners in each city.
Milton Keynes could be due to see the biggest boost to property values following the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee. With the average house price currently sitting at £315,173, a city status boost could add a further £36,875.
House prices in Douglas on the Isle of Man could see a similar increase (£36,643), with Colchester house prices also climbing by just over £36,000.
A city status boost could help add over £20,000 to the average property value in Wrexham (+£23,188) and Bangor (+£21,990), with Dunfermline (+£19,534) and Doncaster (+£18,291) not far behind.
Michael Bruce, CEO and Founder of Boomin, says: “There’s no doubt that city status will bring about a big boost to those towns due to benefit from the Platinum Jubilee celebrations, as this added layer of prestige is sure to attract more business and investment which, in turn, will help cultivate the local economy from the ground up.
"The knock-on effect of this positive economic growth is sure to be greater demand for housing, boosting local property values in the process. In fact, based on the market growth seen across previous towns to receive city status, homeowners in the likes of Milton Keynes could find themselves considerably better off in just 12 months' time.”