It is still possible to buy a family home close to major town or city for £100,000 or less but you will need to look outside of the south of England to bag your bargain house.
That’s according to online estate agent, Housesimple, which set itself the challenge of searching for family homes with price tags of no more than three times the average UK salary.
It filtered the search further by zoning in on homes with three bedrooms or more, which were within five miles of major town or city centres.
The investigation revealed Liverpool was the city which offered the best prospects for families with a top budget of £100,000. In fact, there were 628 family houses currently for sale within five miles of the city centre which were priced at or below this level.
Meanwhile, Rotherham proved the second most likely place to find a sub-£100k family home. Housesimple found 449 properties in and around the south Yorkshire town which fit the bill.
In fact, all the best value towns and cities uncovered in the analysis were in three regions – the north west of England, north east of England and Yorkshire.
In total there were 17 major cities and towns which currently had more than 200 family houses for sale at, or below, £100,000.
Challenges in the south
But not one single town or city in the south of England appeared in the Top 40 of the list. Although Exeter offered the best value of all the places analysed in the south, there were just 23 homes on the market within five miles of the city centre which came in below the £100,000 mark.
Sam Mitchell, CEO of Housesimple, said the research highlighted how buyers can find attractively-priced properties in the north of England but also emphasised the challenges faced by families living in the south.
He said: “Buying the family home is the biggest purchase most of us will ever make. The struggles families have faced buying a house in the south have been well documented.
“Compared to the south, there is substantial value to be found in the property markets in regions such as the north west and Yorkshire.
“Although £100,000 is at the lower end of the market, there are also plenty of substantial family houses at prices around £300,000 to £400,000, that would probably be £1 million plus in and around London, and unaffordable to the majority of families there.”
Cities and towns with homes priced at £100,000 or below (source: Housesimple)
| Town/City | Region | Number of family houses for sale at £100,000 or less |
| Liverpool | North West | 628 |
| Rotherham | South Yorkshire | 449 |
| Newcastle upon Tyne | North East | 393 |
| Gateshead | North East | 379 |
| Hartlepool | North East | 379 |
| Birkenhead | North West | 359 |
| Doncaster | South Yorkshire | 337 |
| Middlesbrough | North East | 308 |
| Leeds | West Yorkshire | 298 |
| Bradford | West Yorkshire | 289 |
| St Helen’s | Merseyside | 287 |
| Barnsley | South Yorkshire | 262 |
| Durham | North East | 262 |
| Blackpool | North West | 247 |
| Wigan | North West | 240 |
| Sheffield | South Yorkshire | 222 |
| Bolton | North West | 212 |
| Hull | East Yorkshire | 190 |
| Chesterfield | Derbyshire | 159 |
| Nottingham | East Midlands | 122 |
