These are the most expensive places in the UK to own a sofa

June 19, 2020

The latest research by lettings and estate agent, Benham and Reeves, has revealed that your sofa is swallowing up as much as £11,000 of your property’s value when it comes to house prices per square foot.

Benham’s research found that on average, the cost of buying a home across the UK sits at £288 per square foot, up from £278 just a year ago. With the average two-seater sofa coming in at 8.4 sqft, it’s costing UK homebuyers £2,417 in property prices when considering the space needed and the cost per square foot.

With space hard to find and prices carrying a premium, London is predictably home to the UK’s most expensive sofas.

In Kensington and Chelsea where the property price per square foot is as high as £1,356, a simple two-seater sofa will swallow up £11,389 worth of property value. Westminster (£9,530), Camden (£8,382), Hammersmith and Fulham (£7,582) are also amongst the most expensive sofa hotspots, with Elmbridge the most expensive outside of London (£4,372).

At the other end of the scale, with a property price per square foot of just £86, a sofa in Blaenau Gwent takes up £722 worth of property value.

However, it’s homebuyers in Fife who have seen the property cost of their sofa increase by the largest margin over the last year. With the property price per square foot increasing from £121 to £192 in just 12 months, the overall cost of a sofa in Fife has jumped 59%; that’s nearly £600.

Homebuyers in Burnley, Pendle and Hyndburn have also seen some of the largest increases in the property cost of their sofa.

However, it’s not all bad news for sofa dwellers. Those moving into a new home in Angus, South Lakeland, Hinckley and Bosworth and East Devon have all seen the property cost for the space required for a sofa fall between five and 15 percent.

Least affordable sofa property spots based on price per sq ft
Location
Average property price per sq ft
Sofa Cost per sq ft (8.4)
Kensington and Chelsea
£1,356
£11,389
Westminster
£1,135
£9,530
Camden
£998
£8,382
Hammersmith and Fulham
£903
£7,582
Islington
£794
£6,672
Southwark
£783
£6,573
Wandsworth
£771
£6,480
Tower Hamlets
£745
£6,254
Richmond upon Thames
£733
£6,155
Hackney
£731
£6,139
Lambeth
£706
£5,929
Brent
£667
£5,606
Haringey
£643
£5,397
Barnet
£607
£5,100
Merton
£574
£4,820
Lewisham
£567
£4,760
Kingston upon Thames
£564
£4,740
Ealing
£558
£4,687
Waltham Forest
£551
£4,628
Elmbridge
£520
£4,372
United Kingdom
£288
£2,417
Biggest annual change in sofa property price footprint
Location
Average property price per sq ft
Sofa Cost per sq ft (8.4)
Change (%)
Fife
£192
£1,613
59%
Burnley
£103
£862
17%
Pendle
£109
£913
14%
Hyndburn
£122
£1,025
12%
Merthyr Tydfil
£114
£960
12%
Liverpool
£156
£1,311
12%
South Tyneside
£148
£1,246
12%
Torfaen
£171
£1,436
10%
Corby
£188
£1,579
10%
Ashfield
£173
£1,453
9%
Nottingham
£202
£1,700
9%
Knowsley
£142
£1,194
9%
Oldham
£154
£1,296
9%
Middlesbrough
£129
£1,084
8%
Rotherham
£153
£1,284
8%
Sandwell
£164
£1,376
8%
Trafford
£253
£2,125
8%
Erewash
£195
£1,641
8%
Newark and Sherwood
£199
£1,673
8%
Melton
£219
£1,840
8%
United Kingdom
£288
£2,417
3%
Most affordable sofa property spots based on price per sq ft
Location
Average property price per sq ft
Sofa Cost per sq ft (8.4)
Blaenau Gwent
£86
£722
Burnley
£103
£862
Pendle
£109
£913
Rhondda Cynon Taf
£110
£921
County Durham
£114
£957
Merthyr Tydfil
£114
£960
Angus
£116
£974
Neath Port Talbot
£118
£994
Hartlepool
£119
£1,000
Blackpool
£120
£1,010
Hyndburn
£122
£1,025
Copeland
£126
£1,057
Blackburn with Darwen
£126
£1,061
Kingston upon Hull
£129
£1,081
Middlesbrough
£129
£1,084
Sunderland
£132
£1,110
Carmarthenshire
£132
£1,110
North East Lincolnshire
£134
£1,122
Rossendale
£136
£1,142
Doncaster
£137
£1,148
United Kingdom
£288
£2,417
Biggest annual change in sofa property price footprint
Location
Average property price per sq ft
Sofa Cost per sq ft (8.4)
Change (%)
Angus
£116
£974
-15%
South Lakeland
£227
£1,903
-5%
Hinckley and Bosworth
£240
£2,016
-5%
East Devon
£264
£2,218
-5%
Kettering
£193
£1,617
-3%
South Norfolk
£239
£2,008
-1%
St Albans
£516
£4,333
-1%
Chelmsford
£351
£2,948
-0.3%
Charnwood
£216
£1,810
-0.2%
Birmingham
£293
£2,457
-0.2%
Warwick
£309
£2,597
-0.1%
Rushmoor
£348
£2,923
0.1%
Warrington
£208
£1,747
0.2%
Hertsmere
£496
£4,162
0.2%
Richmond upon Thames
£733
£6,155
0.3%
Southwark
£783
£6,573
0.3%
Kingston upon Thames
£564
£4,740
0.3%
West Oxfordshire
£333
£2,799
0.3%
Wandsworth
£771
£6,480
0.4%
Winchester
£407
£3,421
0.4%
United Kingdom
£288
£2,417
3%

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