Rightmove: Asking Prices Drop in 11 London Commuter Towns
Market Updates

Rightmove: Asking Prices Drop in 11 London Commuter Towns

By Dr. Priya Sharma, Property Markets Analyst · 24 August 2026 · 1 min read

Editor's note: This brief was summarised by The Property AI Newsroom from a report by Mortgage Strategy. Read the original article for full details.

Rightmove: Asking Prices Drop in 11 London Commuter Towns

Average asking prices have fallen across 11 of London’s popular commuter belt towns, according to new analysis from Rightmove. In contrast, prices have risen in commuter hotspots near Glasgow and Manchester.

Rightmove’s data shows that Haywards Heath, located just south of London, experienced the sharpest fall in house prices among commuter towns over the past year. The average asking price in Haywards Heath dropped by 4.8% to £461,066. Maidenhead in Berkshire also saw a significant decrease, with a 3.9% fall to £571,686. Bath, a city popular with Bristol commuters, recorded a 3.8% dip to £508,109.

The property portal’s analysis covered house price changes around the UK’s largest commuter cities: London, Manchester, Birmingham, Bristol, Glasgow, and Cardiff. While London’s commuter towns often have average asking prices above £500,000, the strongest price growth was seen in more affordable areas near Glasgow and Manchester.

Falkirk, near Glasgow, saw the steepest growth in average asking prices, rising by 13.5% to £183,596. Rochdale, near Manchester, recorded an 8.7% increase to £238,115. Broxbourne in Hertfordshire, within London’s commuter zone, saw prices rise by 8.1% to £654,263.

Rightmove found that 11 of the top 15 fastest-growing locations have average asking prices below £250,000, including Falkirk, Rochdale, and St Helens (£192,570). In total, 10 of the top 15 hotspots for price growth are located around Glasgow and Manchester.

For letting agents and inventory clerks, these trends highlight shifting demand patterns in commuter towns, with affordability playing a key role in price movements across the UK property market.


Source: Mortgage Strategy
About the author
Dr. Priya Sharma
Property Markets Analyst

Dr. Priya Sharma writes The Property AI's data-led coverage of UK property markets — rental indices, sold-price trends, mortgage flows, and regional analysis. Articles bylined Dr. Sharma cite ONS, Land Registry, Bank of England, and primary research data.

PhD Economics. Specialises in: ONS Index of Private Housing Rental Prices, Land Registry data, regional rental analysis, mortgage approvals trends.

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