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How much does it cost to live near a Banksy artwork?

New data analysis from Yopa, the full-service estate agents, reveals that homebuyers who are drawn towards living near a Banksy artwork can expect to pay an average house price premium of 4.2%, which is a snip compared to the prices you’ll pay to live close to the nation’s more traditional galleries.

Yopa has studied house prices for properties located in the same outcode area* as 18 of Britain’s most famous art galleries and compared these prices to each respective wider local authority (LA) district* to see what kind of premiums homebuyers have to pay to live within a stone’s throw of the world’s great artistic masterpieces. For comparison, Yopa has then performed the same analysis for homes located close to 32 different artworks by the supposedly anonymous street artist, Banksy.

National galleries command hefty premiums
The research reveals that to live near one of the nation’s great art galleries you’re going to have to pay an average house price premium of 15.5%.

The average price across the 18 gallery outcodes is £333,829, while the average across the 18 respective wider local authority districts is -£44,848 less at £288,981.

Royal Academy of Art home to the highest
Buyers will need to pay the largest house price premium to live within spitting distance of The Royal Academy of Arts located on Piccadilly in London’s W1 outcode area.

House prices in this outcode average a mind boggling £1.8 million which is a premium of 93.2% compared to the wider LA district (City of Westminster) price of £936,715.

The Bowes Museum is located in Durham’s DL12 outcode area where the average house price is £214,703. This is a premium of 71.3% compared to the wider LA (Durham) average of £125,367.

For the third biggest art gallery house price premium we return to The City of Westminster to visit The National Gallery located in the WC2 outcode area. Here, the average house price of £1.4 million marks a premium of 52% compared to the LA average of £936,715.

This is followed by other large art gallery premiums for the Scottish National Gallery in Edinburgh (40.2%), the Tate Modern on London’s South Bank (35.3%), and the Sainsbury Centre for Visual Arts in Norwich (34.3%).

Banksy property premiums vary
Yopa’s analysis also shows that the price of homes located close to 32 of Banksy’s Britain-based works – found everywhere from Southampton to Hull – command a smaller average price premium of 4.2%.

While more than half of the artworks are located in outcode areas where the average house price is less than that of the wider LA district, the overall premium is due to a selection of works being located in very expensive neighbourhoods.

Take for example a piece entitled Falling Shopper. It is located on the streets of the City of Westminster, close to some of the high brow galleries mentioned above, and because of that, you’ll pay a premium of 93.2% to live close by.

The next biggest Banksy house price premium is found in Hackney’s EC2 outcode area where three of the artist’s works are located – Designated Graffiti Area, His Master’s Voice, and Snorting Copper.

Here, the average house price of £973,674 is 62.8% higher than the wider Hackney LA average of £597,973.

Banksy property price affordability
But as mentioned, much of Banksy’s art is found outside of London, from major regional cities to small seaside towns. And because of this, over half of the studied works command house prices well below their wider LA average.

For example, Banksy Reindeers is found in Birmingham’s B6 outcode area where house prices are -37.3% below the wider LA average.

We’re All In The Same Boat is located in the Suffolk outcode of NR33 where the average house price is -30.3% below the East Suffolk LA average.

Meanwhile, Go Big or Go Home and Bus Shelter Dancers are both found in Great Yarmouth’s NR30 outcode area where house prices are -21.6% below the wider LA average.