London is becoming decreasingly popular with young adults, mainly due to ever-ballooning house prices and rents.
The capital sees house prices averaging around £540,000, more than double the national average of £258,270, and as a result, each borough in London now sees the number of 18-34-year-olds decrease each year.
On average, London boroughs have seen a decrease of 2.75% or 2,000 18-34 year-olds in the last seven years. Hammersmith and Fulham has seen the biggest effect of this young people exodus, with a 5.39% decrease since 2012.
9 of the top 10 areas across the whole country to see population decreases in under 35s are in London, with the tenth being Slough, just 20 miles from the capital.
With London’s young people bust, comes a boom for many other cities. Research by Good Move, using ONS data has revealed that Coventry is coming out on top, with a 3.65% increase in under 35s since 2012, now representing 32% of the city’s population.
Coventry’s popularity has been put down to lower than average house and rental prices, and excellent broadband and 4G speeds, which tends to draw in young professionals.
Good Move’s online interactive tool First Home Hot Spots, which helps young people and first-time buyers see the locations which are growing in popularity with their generation. The tool shows where populations of 18-34-year-olds are increasing, alongside other useful statistics, such as average house prices, the number of jobs available and average salary.
The top 10 UK hotspots for young people that are seeing the largest relative increases in their population of 18-34-year-olds are:
1) Coventry – 3.65%
2) Bath and Somerset – 2.72%
3) Exeter – 2.4%
4) Canterbury – 2.24%
5) West Lancashire – 2.04%
6) Runnymede – 1.97%
7) Guildford – 1.79%
8) Newcastle-under-Lyme – 1.74%
9) Bristol – 1.69%
10) Welwyn Hatfield – 1.61%
Ross Counsell, director at Good Move, said: “Young people bring money, innovation and life to a city and our research has highlighted the places currently benefiting from their interest.
“Buying your first home is a huge deal, with so many factors to consider. This is why we created our new online tool, as it clearly shows how different regions compare in the areas most important to young people.”