New Build Investor Guide – Harrow

Buying a new build property off plan? Check out our Area Guide first

Are you considering purchasing a new build, off plan property in Brent? Want to get the latest information on house prices, demographics and other useful information before you commit to a deal?

Our Area Guides give you the latest relevant information from local governments, the Census and the Office of National Statistics (ONS) data. They’re designed for offshore, new build property investors to help you understand an area in detail so you can make informed investment decisions.

Read on for investor details specifically about Brent but if it’s more detail about the wider UK property market you need, you can download our latest report here. In our report we address two key questions:

1 Is investing in UK residential property still worth it?
2 If so, where are the best opportunities for property investors and why?

Harrow, London

Harrow is one of 20 outer London boroughs and is located in north west London.  Spanning over 19 square miles, it is the 12th largest London borough by area.   Harrow is a largely suburban borough with some countryside to far northern edges. It borders the county of Hertfordshire and the London boroughs Hillingdon, Ealing and Brent. It includes the main towns, Harrow, Pinner and Stanmore. Harrow is perhaps best known for it’s famous school, Harrow School, attended by seven former British prime ministers.


Demographics

Harrow’s population is forecast to grow by just over 7% by 2030

Population (2018) 255,369
Forecast Population 2030 273,953

Source: data.london.gov.uk


Economically Active Population

A largely young, diverse, mobile population.

Age Range Percentage of population
16 – 64 64%
Under 15 21%
Over 65 15%
Martial Status:  
Single 32%

Source: data.london.gov.uk


Average Life Expectancy

The average life expectancies for those born in Harrow between 2016 and 2018 are below.

Males 83 (UK average is 79). Males born in Harrow have the 3rd longest life expectancy of all London boroughs.
Females 86 (UK average is 83). Females born in Harrow have the 5th longest life expectancy of all London boroughs.

Source: ons.gov.uk


Population Density (2011)

Harrow has 4,977 people per km2. Lower than the London average of 5,701 people per km2 and the 13th lowest density of all London boroughs.

Source: ons.gov.uk

International Migration (2018-19)

4,345 new residents from overseas moved to Harrow in 2018 -2019. Twenty London borough’s welcomed more new residents from overseas than Harrow.

Source: ons.gov.uk

Country of Birth

Location of Birth Proportion of Population
UK and Ireland 57%
EU 7%
Other countries 35%

Source: data.london.gov.uk

Crime & Safety

Crime Numbers (April 2017 – March 2018)   13,670
Crime rate per 1,000 population (April 2017 -March 2018) 55
Harrow has the lowest crime rate per 1,000 people of all London boroughs.  

Source: data.london.gov.uk


Education

Schools

Primary Schools 60 (22 of which have an Ofsted rating of outstanding)
Secondary Schools      25 (10 of which have an Ofsted rating of outstanding)
Schools and Colleges (16-18 years) 23 (9 of which have an Ofsted rating of outstanding)

Source: compare-school-performance.service.gov.uk


Universities

University of Westminster Harrow Campus

Hospitals

BMI The Clementine Churchill Hospital
Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital

General Wellbeing

Population considering themselves in very good health 48%
Population considering themselves in very bad health 1%

Source: data.london.gov.uk


Employment & Economy

79% of working aged people employed (compared to 75% across England 74% across London).

Top 4 Sectors of Employment

Finance, banking and insurance 24%
Public administration, education and health    22%
Distribution, hotels and restaurants 20%
Construction 11%

Source: data.london.gov.uk


Major Employers

In 2020, there were 20 companies in the borough employing more than 250 people and 115 companies employing between 50 and 249 people. (source: nomisweb.co.uk).

Jobs and Job density

Aproximately 37,328 residents of Harrow also work in the borough. 30,119 people travel into the borough each day for work and 60,410 residents work outside the borough. The daytime population of the borough therefore decreases by 30,291 people each day. (source: data.london.gov.uk).

Median Gross Annual Pay for full-time employee jobs (2017) £31,365
Number of jobs in the borough (2019)            92,000
Jobs per resident        0.49 (London average 1.03 and UK average 0.87)

Source: nomisweb.co.uk and data.london.gov.uk


Housing

Number of residential properties in Harrow 90,530

Source: data.london.gov.uk

Property Ownership (2018)

own property outright (no mortgage) 31%
own property with mortgage 30%
rent from a Housing Authority or the Local Authority 8%
rent from a private landlord (representing approximately 27,600 private rentals) 31%

Source: data.london.gov.uk

Household with no car or van (2011) 24%

Source: nomisweb.co.uk


Household Composition

One person households    23%
One family households     62%
Other  (sharers / students etc)   15%

Source: nomisweb.co.uk


Average House Prices

Average house prices in Harrow are the fourteenth cheapest of the 32 London boroughs and prices rose by over 6% between January 2020 and January 2021.

Average achieved price January 2020 £447,369
Average achieved price January 2021 £475,996
Increase/Decrease  +6.4%

Source: www.gov.uk


Volume of Sales

During the COVID pandemic, the number of property transactions in the borough of Harrow fell by 32%. Only three other London boroughs saw larger falls in transaction volumes.

Number of residential sales to year ending September 2019 2,273
Number of residential sales to year ending September 2020    1,544

Source: ons.gov.uk


Achieved Rents (January to December 2020)

Mean monthly average rents in the London Borough of Harrow:

  London Median Rents
(per calendar month)
Harrow
(per calendar month)
Studio     £950 £850
1 bedroom £1,200 £1,075
2 bedrooms £1,450 £1,325
3 bedrooms £1,750 £1,650

Source: london.gov.uk


New Build Developments in Harrow

There eight large new build developments in Harrow with apartments currently available for sale. Average asking prices for three of these developments are set out below.

Construction PropTech Pioneer New Build Investor Guide – Harrow

Echo 1 (Hill)

Total Number of Apartments 204 (123 private)
First launched June 2020

Visit Website

Average Prices – Echo 1

  Minimum Average Maximum
Price £285,000 £460,423 £562,500
Price per ft² £577 £639 £754
Area (ft²) 395 725 833

source: Molior

  Minimum Average Maximum
Studio £285,000 £291,500 £298,000
1 Bedroom £347,500 £390,000 £417,500
2 Bedroom £470,000 £509,294 £562,500

source: Molior


Eastman Village – Harrow View East – (Barratt)

Total Number of Apartments 460 (274 private)
First Launched February 2019

Visit Website

Average Prices – Eastman Village – Harrow View East

  Minimum Average Maximum
Price £309,000 £419,032 £650,000
Price per ft² £444 £577 £672
Area (ft²) 525 737 1,464

source: Molior

  Minimum Average Maximum
1 Bedroom £309,000 £337,095 £355,000
2 Bedroom £399,999 £431,750 £466,000
3 Bedroom £520,000 £554,375 £599,000

source: Molior


Taona House (Elysian)

Total Number of properties 70
First Launched November 2017

Visit Website


Average Price – Taona House

  Minimum Average Maximum
Price £490,000 £847,571 £1,320,000
Price per ft² £659 £789 £932
Area (ft²) 642 1,074 1,559

source: Molior

  Minimum Average Maximum
1 Bedroom £490,000 £505,000 £520,000
2 Bedroom £690,000 £984,600 £695,000

source: Molior


Environment & Leisure

Harrow has more than 20 parks and, five have been awarded ‘Green Flag’ status – a national award that recognises the best green and open spaces in the country.

6 leisure and sports centres
Facilities to hire including:
Football pitches
Cricket pitches
Rugby pitches
Tennis Courts
Bowling Greens
Pavilions
6 libraries

Transport

Harrow’s overground and underground stations are in Zones 4 and 5.

Overground Stations

Harrow & Wealdstone Harrow-on-the-hill
Hatch End Headstone Lane
Sudbury Hill Harrow  

Underground Stations

Cannons Park (Jubilee line) Harrow-on-the-Hill (Metropolitan line)
North Harrow (Metropolitan line) Pinner (Metropolitan line)
Rayners Lane ((Metropolitan and Piccadilly lines) South Harrow (Piccadilly line)
Stanmore (Jubilee line) Sudbury Hill (Piccadilly line)
West Harrow (Metropolitan line)  

Local Government

The Labour Party

UK market report 1536x768 2 PropTech Pioneer New Build Investor Guide – Harrow