Where to live in Leeds
Not so long ago, one of the best things about working in Leeds was that you didn’t have to live in it. And why would you? Leeds has never enjoyed a reputation as one of the UK’s most visually stunning metropolises and its surroundings incorporate some of the country’s most beautiful scenery and attractive towns.
This situation is changing rapidly however. 5,000 people now live in the city centre and, while residential development has yet to reach the scale of that in London or Manchester, there are a huge number of projects both recently completed and in the pipeline.
Even in relatively recent times, the only service industry to be found around districts such as the Calls after dark was the late-night variety. Now the areas alongside the River Aire are buzzing with more mainstream activity and the location of some of the city’s best ‘dockland-style’ developments.
“The city’s West End will have a significant residential population in 5 years’ time” says Judith Oliver of city centre property agents, LS1.
The area which starts at the train station and runs parallel to the river has been earmarked for massive redevelopment. Nevertheless, it’s going to be some time before all the main projects, such as City Island and West Point, the former Royal Mail building, are complete.
Of those already built, developments such as 3 Whitehall Quay, City Central and 19 Wellington Street are popular with tenants and owner occupiers alike because of their proximity to the train station, the shopping district, bars and restaurants, not to mention the office. Properties with river frontage certainly attract price premiums and this is reflected in the rents and sales of apartments at the likes of No 1 Dock Street, a development popular with footballers, actors and young professionals.
For those who really do want to live above the shop, the 32-storey Bridgewater Place - due to be completed in 2006 - will be Leeds’ tallest building and home to a number of penthouse apartments and Eversheds’ Leeds headquarters.
“People looking for more of a self-contained community feel should head down to either the Clarence Dock or Brewery Wharf schemes. Both are located on the waterfront and are mixed-use developments which will provide offices, shops, cafés, bars, restaurants and hotels all in one area” Judith Oliver adds.
With prices for 2 bed flats ranging from £155,000 to £300,000 (and rents between £700 and £1,300 per month), these are most popular with younger singles and couples but also increasingly with people who want a pied-a-terre in the city centre while maintaining a family home further out into the countryside.
For those with families who can only afford the 1 house, the area to head for is the so-called ‘Golden Triangle’ north of Leeds, created by Ilkley to the West, Harrogate to the North and Wetherby in the East. Harrogate is an elegant former spa town, while Wetherby is a smaller market town and Ilkley is a picturesque town on the fringe of the Yorkshire Dales national park. The historic city of York, which is 45 minutes away by train, and its surrounding villages are also popular with professionals working in Leeds.
“The area offers a real variety of lifestyles” says Rosie Lambert of relocation specialists, the Premier Relocation Company. “You have a range of city centre, suburban, and rural options. People moving to the region are often very surprised by the contrasts between different parts of the region.”
Another, less pleasant surprise for many are the region’s house prices. Last year, prices in West Yorkshire went up 24% and by 35% the year before, a period in which price growth down south was sluggish. The gap between north and south remains, but anyone hoping to trade in their modest properties down south for a mansion in the north is likely to be disappointed.
Also, at the top end of the market, lack of supply means that houses in the £500,000-£1m bracket are snapped up quickly, often for above the asking price.
Consequently, younger professionals, with or without families, are also heading for the North Leeds suburbs of Headingly, Horsforth, Adel and Alwoodley, leading some estate agents to re-christen the favoured residential locations as the ‘Golden Diamond’. But, even here, prices have been rising rapidly, leading younger professional buyers towards more ‘up-and-coming’ areas such as Colston in the east of the city, Huddersfield to the west and some of villages south of Leeds (although south Leeds itself remains largely off-limits).
Nevertheless, the local housing market still represents better value than the South-East, so it is perhaps not surprising that according to the annual ‘Britain’s Best Cities’ survey conducted by OMIS Research, the Leeds area ranks, with London, Edinburgh, Cardiff and Bristol, among the 5 cities in which senior management and professionals would most like to live.
Leeds Metropolitan Area
| Detached |
£238,508 |
| Semi |
£121,808 |
| Terrace |
£87,909 |
| Flat |
£134,733 |
Leeds, LS1 (City Centre)
| Detached |
Too few sales |
| Semi |
Too few sales |
| Terrace |
Too few sales |
| Flat |
£147,949 |
Leeds, LS17 (Alwoodley)
| Detached |
£283,633 |
| Semi |
£154,165 |
| Terrace |
£135,250 |
| Flat |
£189,762 |
Harrogate
| Detached |
£296,601 |
| Semi |
£166,810 |
| Terrace |
£151,148 |
| Flat/Maisonette |
£122,793 |
York
| Detached |
£218,644 |
| Semi |
£140,849 |
| Terrace |
£133,220 |
| Flat/Maisonette |
£125,082 |
Ilkley (LS29)
| Detached |
£310,275 |
| Semi |
£185,804 |
| Terrace |
£184,804 |
| Flat/Maisonette |
£129,993 |
Wetherby (LS22)
| Detached |
£336,186 |
| Semi |
£150,520 |
| Terrace |
£197,209 |
| Flat/Maisonette |
£157,475 |
Source: Land Registry, Sales completed Oct-Dec 2003
|
