New research has revealed England and Wales’s bathroom ‘Goldilocks zones’, which combine low property prices with a higher chance of finding a house with multiple bathrooms.
The research, by leading bathroom supplier Bathroom Takeaway, analysed the latest house price figures from the Land Registry and data from the ONS on the estimated number of properties with at least two bathrooms in 317 local authorities across England and Wales. It combined the two to find the bathroom ‘Goldilocks zones’ – areas where house prices are lower than the national average, and the percentage of properties with bathrooms is higher than the national average.
Just 50 local authorities, or one in six, meet the criteria of both an average house price below England and Wales’ average of £286,768, and more than 16% of properties containing at least two bathrooms.
South Derbyshire has the highest percentage of properties with at least two bathrooms, on 30.71%, while its average property price of £257,691 falls nearly £30,000 below the average for England and Wales. It is joined by 10 other East Midlands local authorities to qualify as bathroom ‘Goldilocks zones’, including Amber Valley, Charnwood and West Lindsey.
Meanwhile, Stockton-on-Tees is the cheapest area to fit the criteria, thanks to an average house price of £170,575, which is more than £100,000 below the national figure. Its proportion of properties with at least two bathrooms is 19.93%.
North Kesteven in Lincolnshire has the highest average ranking of both factors, indicating that it offers the best balance between low property prices and high chance of multiple bathrooms. The average house cost is £244,502, and 28% of properties have at least two bathrooms.
The majority of areas in the analysis failed on at least one of the criteria, while 49 local authorities had the worst of both worlds – prices higher than the national average and a low percentage of properties with multiple bathrooms.
The London borough of Haringey might be considered the worst combination due to an average property price of £626,807, and just 6.56% of houses containing at least two bathrooms. Out of 317 local authorities measured, it ranks 310th for bathroom availability and 308th for house prices.
Commenting on the study, Peter Johnson, Head of Trading at Bathroom Takeaway said: “Searches for ‘bathroom renovation’ recently reached their highest ever point in the UK, which indicates just how important bathroom space has become for people.
"However, this data demonstrates a real geographical divide – in certain parts of the country, you are far more likely to find a property with two bathrooms without paying a premium. The good thing is, whether you live somewhere with multiple bathrooms, or just one, nowadays there are so many ways to turn the bathroom space you do have into a beautiful and luxurious environment.”
Looking at the 10 regions of England and Wales, London was the worst performer in the analysis, as the average house price across its 32 boroughs is higher than the national figure, while 25 of the boroughs have a lower-than-average number of properties with multiple bathrooms.
Conversely, in the East Midlands, nearly a third of the local authorities – 11 in 35, or 31% – are classed as bathroom ‘Goldilocks zones’, while the West Midlands is second best with nine out of 30, which equates to 30%.
The study was conducted by Bathroom Takeaway, whose mission is to make buying a new bathroom easy, cost-effective and enjoyable.
