CARS have a seemingly unshakeable grip on the affections of Londoners, according to new research which has put a price of UKP9,000 a year on that affection.


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Property website Zoomf found that budding homeowners in London pay 7.5 per cent extra for houses that feature a parking spot. Given average London house prices of UKP343,842, that adds up to UKP25,822 extra.

The extra amount translated into monthly mortgage payments, plus the costs of running a car, plus other charges like the Congestion Charge comes out at about UKP9,000 a year.

“Londoners love their cars,” said Mike Carter of Zoomf. “The amount people are prepared to pay to keep their cars is phenomenal. The price of an annual tube pass is cheap in comparison, at just UKP1,720.”

Today, the Queen is due to set out government plans for housing in the annual Queen’s Speech. For London, the pattern set in recent years has been one of encouraging high-density building where parking spaces are few and far between, a trend that is likely to increase the rarity of parking spaces and therefore their value.