ELECTION 2010: Political Party Property Values
April 15, 2010 at 8:15 AM Zoopla 1 comment
 |
 |
 |
| David Cameron | Gordon Brown | Nick Clegg |
Unlike the election outcome, which is unclear for now, our research into political property values reveals that the Tories rule in the property stakes with average property values in their constituencies significantly above those in Labour controlled areas. Interestingly, despite the fact that there are far fewer homes in areas under their control today, the Tories still have an equal share of the UK’s property wealth, due largely to their strong presence in affluent rural areas and the south east of England in particular.
Some may say this is not totally unexpected, but when you look at the detail there are actually 4.5million more homes under Labour control (11.7m total) compared to 7.2m properties in Conservative constituencies with the Lib Dems some way behind with 2.2m homes.
The Key Points:
- Average house prices in Conservative areas 53% higher than Labour
- Property values in Tory constituencies £89,500 higher than Labour on average
- Average house prices in Tory constituencies £257,500 vs. £168,000 for Labour
- Lib Dem seats show highest growth in property values over the past 5 years
- Gordon Brown’s own constituency amongst the lowest property values in UK
Average house prices in Tory-controlled areas now stand at £257,518, followed by Lib Dem constituencies where the average home is worth £228,880, whilst Labour comes in a distant third at £168,112, with property values in areas under their control at almost 20% below the national average.
Average property values in each party’s constituencies
| Party | Average Value (April 2010) |
% Change since last election (May ’05) |
Average Value when Labour came to power (May ’97) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Conservatives | £257,518 | 7.82% | £92,392 |
| Liberal Democrats | £228,880 | 10.24% | £78,813 |
| Labour | £168,112 | 7.99% | £60,567 |
Source: Zoopla.co.uk
The research also highlights that Labour-controlled constituencies have experienced the lowest gains in property values since they came to power in 1997, with house price growth in areas under their control up 177% over the 13 year period compared to 179% in Tory areas and an impressive 190% in areas under Lib Dem control.
As for the party leaders own constituencies, the average property value in Gordon Brown’s Kirkcaldy and Cowdenbeath seat is £120,910, well below both the average for his party and the national average. Average property prices in Witney, the Oxfordshire seat of David Cameron, stand at almost 2.5 times that figure at £289,686, well above the national average (£209,101) whilst in Nick Clegg’s Sheffield Hallam constituency, the average home would set you back £219,136.
Average property values in each leader’s constituency
| Leader | Average Value (April 2010) |
% Change since last election (May ’05) |
Average Value when Labour came to power (May ’97) |
|---|---|---|---|
| David Cameron | £289,686 | 12.30% | £98,756 |
| Nick Clegg | £219,136 | 5.14% | £79,857 |
| Gordon Brown | £120,910 | 18.57% | £38,691 |
Source: Zoopla.co.uk
In terms of the total current value of residential property located in areas controlled by each party, the Tories and Labour come out almost exactly neck and neck at £1.9 trillion each, despite Labour’s significant advantage of 11.7m homes in areas under their control compared to only 7.2m homes in Conservative areas. The total value of the 2.2m homes in areas under the control of the Liberal Democrats stands at £0.5 trillion.
Please feel free to share and use this research; all we ask is that you credit the source as the Zoopla.co.uk and if possible link to Zoopla.co.uk. Thank you. Here’s the original press release.
Entry filed under: Election 2010, House Prices, Politics. Tags: Election 2010, Politics, property.
1 Comment Add your own
Why not leave us a comment or share this with the buttons above?
Trackback this post | Subscribe to the comments via RSS Feed
1.
Better Properties Brokerage | May 7, 2010 at 5:41 PM
Interesting article. With the housing market downturn happening all over the globe, I like your take on the political impact this has based on the house values in the politicians’ districts. Thanks for the data.