House prices are rising so fast that home-owning commuters earn capital gains enough to recover their annual rail fare in a matter of days, International Business Times reports.
Property website Zoopla recently released their analysis of data and rail fares and Solihull is the top commuter-belt area that is benefiting from the increasing house prices.
Annually, commuters in Solihull spend £655 to travel to nearby Birmingham, and according to Zoopla, house prices in Solihull increased 10.7% to £341,470 in 2015, gaining £34,695. With that, recouping the cost of rail travels can be recouped in only seven days with the rising value of property.
Surbito, located in the outskirts of south-west London, takes the second spot. The average house price also climbed 10.7%, or £57,813, to reach £567,250. Travelling to central London costs commuters £1,800 in total for the whole year, which means that Surbiton's home-owning commuters can recoup the cost in 11 days.
Most of UK's rail fares are regulated and usually make an increase yearly. Usually, the average is 1.1%, the price growth as of January 2016, and price increases vary in different parts in the country. Since the Conservatives' control in 2010, labour believes that prices have gone up an average of 25%, which means £2,000 in cash terms for some commuters. The government has expressed their mission to cap rail fare rises based on the inflation.
"Our research shows how much property prices have increased in certain popular commuter areas over the last 12 months and also highlights just how expensive commuter-belt living can be," said Lawrence Hall, a spokesman for Zoopla.
"As we'd expect, properties in key commuting areas continue to be in demand for buyers in competitive markets. While our research may soften the blow of increased rail fares for home owning commuters, the price rises we're seeing do make it harder for those looking to take their first step onto the property ladder."
Meanwhile, Dunfermline near Edinburgh is Zoopla's worst performing commuter area. The average property price in the area is £166,015 after rising £3,888 in 2015. Travelling to Edinburgh from Dunfermline costs £1,652 annually, which means it took 155 days to recover rail fare cost with its rate of house price increase.
