Rutland named as best place for affordability and lack of crime

Rutland in the East Midlands is the best place in England and Wales to buy property when it comes to affordability and low crime rates, according to new research. Other areas with reasonable prices and high on safety include West Somerset, Eden, Ryedale, Richmondshire and Purbeck, the analysis of prices and crime statistics by hybrid estate agent Emoov shows. In contrast, the majority of the areas with the worst balance of unaffordable property values and high crime levels are in larger urban centres. Outside of London, Bristol tops the list, followed by Brighton and Hove, Wiltshire, Cambridge and Leeds. The report says that it is no surprise that London has the most expensive property values and highest crime rates. But within the capital there are areas where this is not the case such as Sutton where property prices are below London’s average at £384,902 and crime levels are 110% below the capital’s average. Although the City of London itself does rank higher than Sutton, the average price is £768,751, out with the budget of most buyers. The City of Westminster and Camden are among the worst for unaffordability and high crime levels. ‘There is of course, a direct correlation between the amount of crime in an area and the price home buyers are willing to pay to live there,’ said Emoov chief executive officer Russell Quirk. ‘Unfortunately for many, the cost of getting on the ladder means they don’t have the luxury of considering crime rates when looking to buy, while city living also remains popular despite a higher tendency for crime in more populated urban environments,’ he added. For the research Emoov looked at all crimes reported across England and Wales in 2017 and then looked at the percentage difference between each area and the average number of crimes in England and Wales in 2017 and the percentage difference for property prices in each area when compared to the average. Finally, Emoov combined the two percentages to give each area a percentage score and ranked them based on this. The lower the score the better, indicating a safer place to live at a more affordable price. The higher the score, the higher the crime and unaffordability of property.