The Daily Telegraph - Saturday - Money
How to invest in the Elizabeth Line
Two thirds of the areas around stations on the line haven’t yet felt the ‘Crossrail effect’, says Arabella Youens. Here are the best places to make the most of coming house price rises
The first construction work on the Elizabeth Line – also known as Crossrail – began almost 13 years ago on May 15 2009. Now it is almost here: it’s due to open on May 24.
When it was announced, investment poured into property along the line. But that didn’t always translate into rising house prices as delay after delay hit, said Marc von Grundherr of estate agents Benham & Reeves.
“There was a lot of excitement when it was launched all those years ago; we saw an influx of buyers purchasing homes in the outer boroughs of London and the Home Counties,” he said. “This meant house prices and rental figures rocketed. But as Crossrail derailed, so did growth rates.”
While some areas around Crossrail stations recorded strong house price growth, such as Bond Street, where prices within 500m of the station climbed by 8pc a year, many did not. Two thirds of stations along the Elizabeth Line that stand within residential areas (excluding, for example, Heathrow Airport) have not seen a significant rise in prices between 2008 and now, research by estate agency Savills found.
The data suggests that values within 500m of many (but not all) west London stations have performed in line with the wider area (measured as between 1km and 2km away) since construction started on Crossrail. But in the areas around east London stations, where there is a higher concentration of flats, annual price growth was half a percentage point slower than in the wider area. It is here where buyers can invest now to reap the rewards of later price growth – and take advantage of the Crossrail effect.
Lawrence Bowles of Savills said: “Once full service starts on the line, we expect to see a Crossrail premium.” Historically, areas near new rail projects have outperformed the wider market. In the five years after the Jubilee Line extension there was an average of 7.3pc annual growth around the stations, more than the wider market.
Here are the most promising areas to invest around Crossrail stations where house price growth has slumped but could now accelerate as it opens.
CUSTOM HOUSE
Property values in Royal Docks, around Custom House station, have risen negligibly, by just 2.2pc annually, since Crossrail was announced. Meanwhile, areas a bit further out have recorded growth of 3.3pc a year.
This is a regeneration hotspot: 25,000 new homes are in the pipeline and £8bn worth of investment is being poured into the area, in part because of connections being improved by Crossrail.
Local businessman Ben Hession moved there from around Stratford.
“It was the sheer amount of investment in the area that attracted me,” said Mr Hession, who established Loaf.ly, a zero-waste business that delivers fresh milk, bread and more around the area on a bike (locals describe him as a modern- day milkman). “I like the fact that we’re at the beginning of the creation of a new community.”
ACTON
In parts residential and light industrial, Acton has in recent years attracted housebuilders which have converted old warehouses and other buildings into new housing. Crossrail was a huge factor in this: the journey to Bond Street will fall from 43 minutes to just nine.
In the 500m around the station, property prices have increased by 3.8pc annually in the years since construction began, compared with 4.4pc in the wider area. Until now, Acton has been overlooked, said Salim Hussain of estate agents Marsh & Parsons. “Prices are still reasonable compared with neighbouring areas – prices are much higher in Ealing, for instance, even though Acton is closer to central London,” he said.
“Savvy buyers who are living in twobedroom flats in Notting Hill and Holland Park who can’t afford to upsize in those areas often move to Acton instead and this is only going to become more common as its desirability increases.”
Alice Sunderland is a personal trainer based in Acton. She and her family moved there in 2018 in search of more space and to be closer to the new station. “My husband is quite brave when it comes to property and likes to take on projects in places that he feels are on the rise,” she said. Their house is just a few minutes’ walk from Acton Main Line station. “It’s so exciting. I can’t believe how quick it’ll be to go into the West End and it’ll open up going across to east London, too. But I really feel that there is so much potential here, with lots of young families moving into this area and new businesses opening.”
Nina Harrison of Haringtons, a buying agency, added: “Agents have been talking up the benefits of Crossrail in Acton for years, but I’m not sure anyone has really taken much notice. The actual opening of the line will see a whole new level of interest in the area.”
ROMFORD, ESSEX
While house prices in the wider area of this Essex commuter town have risen by 4.1pc annually since 2008, those around the station have increased by only 2.8pc a year.
Trains on the new line will take 27 minutes to reach Liverpool Street. A fly in the ointment for Romford’s future is that ambitious plans to redevelop the town centre and introduce new housing have stalled. Permission was granted earlier this year for the former ice rink site close to the Elizabeth Line station to be converted into nearly 1,000 new homes with various amenities including a medical centre.
WOOLWICH
There’s been so much going on in Woolwich in recent years that some have begun to call it “Coolwich”.
Major property developments including Royal Arsenal Riverside have transformed former munitions factories and military buildings into smart new riverside homes. It forms part of the £1.2bn regeneration scheme for the area, with a further £17m secured from the Future High Streets Fund for improvements to the town centre.
Despite all this investment, it currently has the greatest price difference of all the stations relative to the wider area around it. Values of properties within 500m of the station have risen by 2.3pc annually since construction of the new line began, while those between 1km and 2km away have risen by 5.2pc a year.
The fact that the journey time to the City will be halved when the Elizabeth Line opens is bound to have an impact.
After a recent move from Wales to south- east London, Dr Aditi Shinde and Dr Soubhik Ghosh decided on a three-bedroom apartment in Trinity Walk, a new development in Woolwich. “Crossrail opening this summer was a big consideration for our move as it will reduce the commute to my workplace,” said Dr Shinde. Her journey will be 30 minutes by train while her husband’s will be just 10 minutes.
She added: “Woolwich works well for us as there is a local community to feel connected to – the local cinema, the choice of shops – and great access to get around the capital.”
EALING BROADWAY
The long- standing irony that a centre of film-making in Britain – and the birthplace of its very own genre of comedy – has been without a functioning cinema since 2008 is nearly over. Ealing Filmworks, an eight-screen cinema with more than 1,000 seats, will be the largest Picturehouse cinema outside the West End.
The station, which is a seven-minute walk from the cinema, puts Ealing within 11 minutes of central London. That, according to Nick Vaughan of Savills, will make it London’s bestconnected borough, bearing in mind the two existing underground stations and National Rail services. “With community at its heart, this vibrant destination is very much the sum of its eclectic parts,” said Mr Vaughan.
There is value to be found here: prices around the new station in Ealing Broadway have grown by 4.3pc annually since the Crossrail project began, while values further away are now 5pc a year higher.
Glenn Kelly, a motion capture specialist who works at Ealing Film Studios, bought a flat at the Filmworks development adjacent to the new cinema. “Taking the long- term view I think it will make it easier to sell,” said Mr Kelly. “As a result of Crossrail, Ealing is moving away from its ‘queen of the suburbs’ image and becoming more vibrant.”
MAIDENHEAD, BERKSHIRE Long-standing commuter towns such as Maidenhead have always been popular choices for families, giving access to the countryside and the capital. The new line is likely to make them even more popular but for now properties around the main station offer more value than those further away – they have risen in price by 3.3pc and 3.4pc annually since 2008 respectively.
Katie Herbert, who works for a PR company in the City, grew up in Maidenhead and has moved back from London to raise a family. “Maidenhead has great schools and has always been a fast commute to Paddington – even before the murmurings of Crossrail,” she said. “My partner and I are now looking to buy a family home, though with ever-rising house prices our budget is pushing us further afield to peripheral towns like Bracknell and Woodley.”
As her commute is to Moorgate in the City, Maidenhead remains a preferred location because of the connections to nearly Liverpool Street. “Time is incredibly precious when raising a young family and shaving off 30 minutes to be able to do the nursery run is a game changer,” she said. “It’s the classic dilemma of prioritising either a nicer home or its location.”
Demand is currently very strong. Agents say they have buyers waiting on the sidelines and don’t need to advertise any new listings as a result. “These key commuter towns seem to be a game of who you know to get in the door of a brilliant house,” said Ms Herbert. “Wait too long and you have no chance.”