How long will it take your house price to overtake that hike in your rail fare?

Rising house prices could 'earn' home owners enough to cover the cost of their annual rail fare in as little as eight days, according to analysis by a property website.
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Zoopla compared property price growth in popular commuter towns across Britain over the past 12 months with the cost of an annual train ticket.

It identified Esher in Surrey as the place where rising house prices would match the cost of an annual commute the quickest, for home owners commuting from there to London.

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Zoopla estimates they would match the annual commuting cost of £2,080 in just eight days because of rising housing prices in Esher.

But in Yorkshire, at the other end of the spectrum, people commuting from Pontefract to Leeds face one of the longest waits in the country for rising house prices to pay off the cost of their travel. Those commuting from the town in West Yorkshire to Leeds could face at least 97 days before their house prices rise high enough, according to Zoopla.

Elsewhere in the North of England, Stockport was identified as the best-performing commuter town, with house price growth there expected to match the £792 yearly rail fare to Manchester in 15 days.

Meanwhile, those commuting from Greenock to Glasgow in Scotland face the longest wait for rising house prices to pay off the cost of their travel, among the areas looked at by Zoopla.

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If house prices keep rising at current levels, the wait could be nearly a full year, at nearly 329 days, according to the calculations.

Lawrence Hall, a spokesman for Zoopla, said: “Our figures may at least soften the blow slightly for those already living in the suburban locations at the top end of the table”.