The Crossrail development has seen house prices increase significantly in Reading and Slough since the rail project was announce in 2014.
The Crossrail scheme spans from Heathrow airport and Reading in the west to Abbey Wood and Shenfield in the east to connect major employment centres in Canary Wharf and the City to Essex and Berkshire.
The 40 station route rail scheme is still currently being developed and will be called the Elizabeth Line when it officially opens in December 2018.
The latest research carried out by Nationwide showed that the west side of the route experienced a significant house price rise, with the average house price in Slough and Reading increasing by 39% and 33% respectively since April 2014, in comparison with the 22% average increase nationally.
In Slough, the average house price has historically been about 15 to 20% lower than the regional average, however the recent growth caused by the Crossrail scheme means that prices are now about 6% lower than the average in the South East.
After the Crossrail project was officially announced, the number of homes sold in the three months to August 2014 went up by 24% year on year in Wokingham, against the 16% average in the region.
Andrew Harvey, Nationwide Economic Analyst, commented: “The new Elizabeth Line is likely to make Slough an attractive proposition for London workers who prefer not to live in the capital as journey times will be around 15 minutes faster into central London and 20 minutes faster to the Docklands.”
Harvey added that the recent research shows that Slough is not just a good place to live and commute, but it is also becoming one of the top business and employment hubs in the UK, which he believes makes it clear that the town is becoming a more attractive proposition for people to move to.
