In today’s episode of ‘gorgeous places I’d love to live but could never actually afford to’, we have Harpenden; a picture-perfect market town that’s just been crowned the most desirable town in the whole country.
Harpenden’s shiny new accolade comes courtesy of The Telegraph and Savills, who teamed up to uncover Britain’s most highly-coveted places to live. They scoured the length and breadth of the country to find the most sought-after spots. But based on the top ten towns, they needn’t have bothered venturing out of the South East, to be quite honest with you.
The desirability data was based on a number of factors. Green spaces, travel links, schools, education and employment rates were all taken into account to create the list. And it seems as though being within a commutable distance of London contributes rather sizably towards a town’s desirability, as a large proportion of the towns on the list are squeezed inside the capital’s commuter belt. Buckinghamshire and Hertfordshire dominated the top ten, and the town that topped the charts is picture-perfectly perched within the latter.
The most desirable town in Britain
Just a hop, skip, and a jump 30 minute train ride from London, the historic town of Harpenden managed to nab the crown. Praised for its village charm, exceptional schools, wonderful range of restaurants, bars and leisure facilities, and the fact that 60% of residents hold a degree-level qualification; Harpenden is a spot that manages to seamlessly bridge the gap between city and village living.
Now, the average house in Harpenden will set you back a rather eye-watering £950,000. So, if – like me – you’ve spent all your money on over priced coffee and avocados; snapping up a gaff there might be off the cards. But considering it’s frequently referred to as ‘snobby’, maybe that’s not such a bad thing, anyway. Not that I’m bitter about it, or anything…
The 10 most desirable towns in Britain:
- Harpenden, Hertfordshire
- Cobham, Surrey
- Beaconsfield, Buckinghamshire
- Chorleywood, Hertfordshire
- Amersham, Buckinghamshire
- Hale, Greater Manchester
- Esher, Surrey
- Gerrards Cross, Buckinghamshire
- Berkhamsted, Hertfordshire
- St Albans, Hertfordshire
You can peruse The Telegraph’s full findings here.