An extra bedroom costs you £161,221

The average price difference between a three bedroom and a four bedroom property in London is a staggering £161,221, according to the latest figures released by Zoomf.com, London property search engine.

With the average price of a three bedroom property at £396,387 and a four bedroom home at £557,608, many home owners will be forced to look at alternatives such as loft conversions and extensions rather than moving to a larger place.

If you’re planning to move up the ladder from your rather cramped one bedroom flat to a two bedroom property, then be prepared to pay an average of £89,751 more for that additional bedroom.

Currently, there are only 5,698 one bedroom properties on the London market compared to 13,655 two bedroom, 10,636 three bedroom and 7,916 four bedroom properties.

The shortage of one bedroom flats will be a worry for first time buyers as the extra cost of a two bedroom property will be out of the reach for many purchasers. And with property prices continuing to rise in London and the shortage of stock on the market, the situation is only likely to get worse.

Mike Carter, co-founder of Zoomf, comments: “The price gap between an average three bedroom and four bedroom property is so great that it is difficult to see how many people will be able to make the jump.

“What we will probably see is more and more people using the space they currently have to develop and extend their properties.”

Property prices:

The rise in property prices show no sign of relenting with more than 7% of properties in the capital on the market for £1million or above.

There are also 200 properties for sale for £5 million or more and 42 properties on the market for a bank busting £10 million plus.

The most expensive property currently for sale in London is 47 Belgrave Square, an 11 bedroom property in Knightsbridge, which has an asking price of £35 million, through Savills.

Areas and Postcodes:

As far as buyers are concerned, Fulham Broadway leads the way as the most desirable area in London for the second month running. Hammersmith fills the second spot in May as it did in April. St John’s Wood, Islington and Fulham complete the top five positions.

The average price of properties for sale currently in Fulham Broadway is £696,385 compared to £636,663 in Hammersmith.

Mike Carter comments: “The traditional areas are still the big favourites with London’s savvy home buyers. Even with all the publicity surrounding the Olympics and the regeneration of East London, buyers still prefer popular areas such as Fulham and Islington.”

On the lettings side, Wimbledon regained top position in May from Chiswick as the most popular area to rent. There are currently more than 20,000 properties available to let in London with an average letting price of £578pw.

For the third month running, N1 is the most desirable postcode in London, with nearly a tenth of all searches for properties in May in areas such as Islington and Kings Cross.

Five postcodes in May — N1, W2, W1, SE1 and W11 — made up a fifth (20%) of all home buyers searches. Also N1, W1 and W2 continue to be the hottest postcodes in London, featuring in the top five places in March, April and May.

No East London postcodes appeared in the top ten desirable postcodes. For lettings, SE1 was the most popular areas for people looking to rent.

If you’re looking for the hottest street in London then look no further that Bishops Park Road in Fulham. Home buyers can’t get enough of this leafy street as it has featured as one of the top two most desirable streets in London three months running.

The hottest street in May, though, was Kings Cross Road as the area continues to benefit from the redevelopment of Kings Cross Station and surrounding areas. For the curry lovers amongst you, Brick Lane spiced things up by securing the number five spot in May.

Property features:

Finally, for those of you out there who fancy lounging in the evening sun while sipping a cool Martini, there are currently 408 properties on the market in London with roof terraces and 6,107 properties with gardens — which is only one in seven, so you’ll need to be quick!

If you have always dreamed of being near or by the river, then there are currently 108 properties with river views and 56 properties by the waterside.