Official – positive street names can boost your home’s value

 

By Rafi Mauro-Benady

Having an upbeat street name can boost your home’s value by up to £25,000 according to new research.

A study carried out by finance experts Bankrate.com/uk gathered synonyms of “happy” or other words associated with positivity,

They then located streets with those names and compared them with prices in surrounding areas.

It found ‘Hope’ is the most frequent positive road name, appearing 216 times across the UK. This is followed by ‘Summer’ (127), ‘Sunny’ (126) and ‘Love’ (123).

The research revealed ‘Chipper’ is the most valuable street name – adding over £50,000 in value.

‘Pretty’ Street, Road or Avenue came second, adding £45,000 in value.

And prices in South London confirmed Bankrate’s research.

A one-bedroom flat in ‘Champion Hill’, Camberwell is valued at £375,000 on Zoopla. The same sized property drops to £205,000 in neighbouring Denmark Hill.

Similarly a two-bedroom flat in Bliss Crescent, Lewisham costs £360,000, and this plummets to £275,000 for a one-bedroom on the road adjacent.

Dulcie Menzie, 24, is a costume coordinator assistant as well as a Champion Hill, Camberwell, resident.

She snapped up her two-bedroom abode in Ruskin Park House back in December 2019 for a healthy £384,000.

She admitted that ‘Champion Hill’ influenced her decision making when house searching because it sounds like a place where a winner might live.

She said she sees her street as something royal: She said: “It’s got a prestigious name to it and it feels slightly regal.”

 ‘Heaven’ is the most valuable street name in London, with an added value of £29,273.

The capital came comparatively low in the rankings with 92 happy names.

The research found South London has 21 happy names such as Ha-Ha Road in Woolwich, Smiles Place in Lewisham, Sunny Bank in South Norwood, Jolly Mews in Streatham, and Butterfly Lane in Eltham.

Lewisham boasts the most happy street names in South London, with seven. Greenwich follows closely with five.

Southwark and Croydon have three, while Merton, Lambeth and Wandsworth have only one.

Personal finance expert at Bankrate, Florence Codjoe said: “Largely due to the widespread disruption caused by Covid-19, the property market is in a turbulent state.

“Despite uncertainty, there is positive news – those living on a street with a happy name have something to smile about in these tough times.

“Road names, which include positive words such as hope and love really do boost the value of properties within that respective street.”