Mayor of Hackney fears proposals for new transport link Crossrail 2 may drive up house prices in the borough
07-18-2014
Mayor of Hackney Jules Pipe. Pic: Hackney Council
Mayor of Hackney, Jules Pipe, has welcomed plans for Crossrail 2 but raised concerns that the development of the tube line may push house prices up in the borough.
Plans are well underway for the underground tube line between south-west and north-east London, which will link Hackney to central London in journey times expected to be less than ten minutes. Options are being considered for the route from Wimbledon to Tottenham.
In comments to the Islington Gazette, Pipe said: “It’s the third transport facility that we have always lobbied for in Hackney over the past 10 years. Hackney has always been the only inner London borough without its own Tube station.
“There’s only one downside, and that is Hackney will be an even more popular place to live than it’s becoming already and that will inevitably drive up private house prices.”
Crossrail 2 is unlikely to open before 2029, so local estate agents have said that it is too early to predict an impact on house prices.
They are sure, however, that the transport line will have a positive impact on the borough as a whole.
“I have worked in other areas prior to transport improvements and seen the impacts,” said Zuleikah Davis, Sales Manger at Atkinson Mcleod in Hackney. “It really does benefit, not just the immediate area, but there is a ripple effect.
“Crossrail 2 will make [Hackney] more accessible to people working in Tottenham Court Road, Marylebone and the large cluster of media industries in that part of London.”
Davis stopped short of predicting a hike in housing prices, saying: “It may not have an immediate effect but it will keep prices strong.”
Debbie Blow, Manager at the Hackney Branch of Keaton’s Estate Agents, expressed similar views.
“Crossrail 2 would be a major plus but because it is so far off it is difficult to predict the impact.”
However, the Mayor’s fears about house prices are not unfounded.
Research has shown a house price increase of around 20 per cent near stations under construction in central London as part of the Crossrail link, Europe’s biggest construction project, that will link Reading and Heathrow in the west, to Shenfield and Abbey Wood in the east. Average house price increases along the length of the line were 13 per cent.
Average house prices in Hackney have already reached £544,505, according to May 2014 figures from Land Registry, pushing many locals out of the market in a borough with a median income of £32,190.
The Crossrail 2 project is estimated to cost between £12 and £20 billion, with TfL currently considering whether to place the Crossrail 2 link in Dalston or Hackney Central.
TfL are asking for views on whether Dalston or Hackney Central should have the Crossrail 2 connection until July 25, 2014. To find out more, visit: https://consultations.tfl.gov.uk/crossrail/june-2014/