The Fact File on London Housing

Online, February 27, 2014 (Newswire.com) - High property costs

However, London is also synonymous with costly housing prices. Of late London residents are bearing the punch of several high costs. A recent research report outlined the 'London Factor' as a set of advantages and disadvantages of living in the capital city of London. Some of the major findings are.

Always Above National Average: The house prices in London are 79 percent higher than the UK average of £173,687.

No Great Erosion in Prices: The property prices in London have held on in terms of value much better than the UK average since 2007, with average prices staying only sliding 4 percent below the peak unlike the 13 percent dip experienced nationally.

Owner Held Homes: Around half (49.5 percent of London's homes are occupied by the owners themselves. This is well below the national owner occupation rate 64.3 percent. Outright ownership is also the lowest in London 21percent compared to 31percent nationally.

Most Expensive Place: London is the most expensive place to own and run a house in the entire UK, where the average cost at £12,094 is pretty high compared to the UK average of £9590.

High Rent

Renting is turning more expensive than buying property in the capital. The homeowners in London typically pay 8 percent less than what an average London private renter pays in a month.

Earns More

The silver lining is that Londoners earn more. Those holding full time jobs earn 32 percent higher than the UK monthly average of £2,774. In the matter of average disposable income also, Londoners are 28 percent higher than the national average.

High Cost of Living

The cost of London living is higher than anywhere in the country. So, Londoners have the lowest savings rate as a proportion to annual gross earnings at 22 percent compared to the UK average of 29 percent.