Life in a thriving, well-connected community is good for health and wellbeing, according to research for The Prince’s Foundation by the University College of Estate Management published today – but are there financial benefits too?

As part of The Value of Community analysis, we were commissioned to take a fresh look at the figures behind a sustainable approach to new housing, focusing on the legacies of the urban extensions to Dorchester and Aylesbury: Poundbury and Fairford Leys.

As walkable, mixed-use communities, both boast strong sustainable urbanism credentials. Not only were they found to have significantly higher residential development values per hectare compared to the local towns, properties also hold their value.

New-build homes typically command premium prices compared to the local market because of minimal maintenance costs in the first ten years. And that premium is usually eroded to some degree when resold.

However, Poundbury bucks that trend and retains its value particularly well. Over the life of the development, resales have achieved a 25 per cent average premium over the local market. What’s more, there is no erosion of the new-build premium and house prices between the first and second sale have increased by 0.6 per cent more per year compared to growth locally. It has also proved more resilient than Dorchester, maintaining activity throughout the housing market cycle in contrast to the rest of the country where transaction levels are currently 29 per cent below their pre-Global Financial Crisis (GFC) average.

Homes that were resold at Fairford Leys while it was still being built achieved the same value per square foot premium as those that were new to the market (27 per cent over the second-hand market in Aylesbury). And while, as expected, the price premium has to a degree been eroded over time, buying there is still 11 per cent more expensive than the local market today, despite the scheme being completed more than ten years ago.

For residents, the attractions of sustainable urbanism seem clear. Advocates will be hoping its appeal continues to strike a chord with landowners and developers.

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