Rural homes 'costlier than urban'

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Rural homes are less affordable than urban ones, with average prices more than seven times the typical local wage, a bank has reported.

House price inflation has pushed the average rural property value up to £246,104, which is £30,000 above that of a town house, Halifax said.

Carrick, Cornwall, was deemed the least affordable rural area.

The survey found the average house price in the district was £269,241, over 10 times the average local salary.

Chiltern in Buckinghamshire was identified as the most expensive rural location was an average price tag of £474,850.

Property ladder

Martin Ellis, chief economist at Halifax, said people in rural areas faced "particularly tough" housing market conditions.

"In general, higher average property prices, together with lower earnings, mean that housing is less affordable than in urban areas," he said.

"Many young people in particular are therefore finding it tough to find a foot on the property ladder.

"This difficult situation is compounded by lower levels of provision of social housing in rural areas."

The research found that the average property price was 7.1 times average annual earnings in rural areas.

Social housing

As a result there were fewer first-time buyers in the countryside where they made up just 17% of home-buyers, compared to 33% in urban locations.

The survey by Halifax and its sister company Bank of Scotland concluded that only 13% of property was designated social housing in the countryside, compared to a fifth of homes in urban areas.

In Scotland the report suggested that rural house prices had risen by 112% in the last five years - compared with a 107% increase in urban areas.

It put an average Scottish rural home at £177,007 - 12% more than the £157,519 paid in the city.