Housing Costs Cheaper in LGBTQ+ Areas of Many UK Cities

LGBTQ+ neighbourhoods in some of the UK’s largest cities were found to have cheaper homes in comparison to their surrounding areas, according to new findings by Zoopla.

The property site examined neighbourhoods known to be popular among members of the LGBTQ+ community, such as Soho in London and Canal Street in Manchester, to see whether those neighbourhoods had any kind of price premium.

As many as 70 per cent of popular LGBTQ+ neighbourhoods in UK cities actually offered cheaper prices than homes in surrounding areas, Zoopla claimed. Many properties in these areas have been transformed from formerly low-quality accommodation into attractive properties in the city centres.

London and Manchester buck the trend

London was found to buck the trend, according to Zoopla. London’s Old Compton Street neighbourhood, a well-known LGBTQ+ district in Soho, had house prices with a 90 per cent premium over homes in other areas of the city.

In the capital’s surrounding areas, homes were found to be worth £647,488 but buyers looking for homes in the Old Compton Street area found themselves paying as much as £1,232,427. Overall, London was identified as the most expensive city to buy or rent a home, regardless of where buyers sought to look.

Manchester also had something of a premium on house prices in LGBTQ+ neighbourhoods, especially in the well-known Canal Street district. House prices in the Canal Street area were found to be £13,707 more expensive than those in surrounding neighbourhoods.

In terms of average rental prices in London, renters were faced with potential rents significantly higher in many LGBTQ+ districts such as Old Compton Street. Prospective renters faced a 67 per cent rent premium for moving in that area, which was worth as much as £5,480 in additional monthly rent, according to Zoopla.

Bristol enjoys cheapest prices

Zoopla found savings to be made for buyers looking for properties in LGBTQ+ neighbourhoods in 70 per cent of the cities they looked at. Out of the 10 cities they surveyed, Liverpool had the cheapest LGBTQ+ neighbourhood, with homes costing just £159,509 on average.

This was 10.4 per cent cheaper than homes in other parts of the city.

Bristol’s Old Market Quarter was found to have the greatest savings for any LGBTQ+ neighbourhood in a major city, when compared with surrounding areas. Prices in the Old Market Quarter were estimated to be 18.7 per cent cheaper, costing a potential buyer an average price of just £260,285.