First-time Buyer
Top commuter hotspots revealed
The Hertfordshire town of Cheshunt has taken the top spot as the best commuter town, from a survey looking at house prices, length of commute, season ticket cost and resident satisfaction.
Cheshunt has a 26 minute commute with Greater Anglia trains going direct to Liverpool Street. It has a 7.92 resident satisfaction score and a season ticket costs just £2,288.
Hertfordshire faired well in the survey, with six towns taking spots in the top 10 compiled by credit report group TotallyMoney. Waltham Cross, Hatfield, Broxbourne and Hemel Hampstead all scored highly on each area.
However, other popular Hertfordshire commuter towns, such as Harpenden, fell down on house prices. It was 114th out of 116 towns, in spite of its green spaces and excellent schools. Harpenden’s average house price is £808,357 and rail season tickets costing £3,940
Other counties fared less well. Surrey, for example, only managed two towns in the top 25 (Epsom and Walton-on-Thames). At the other end of the rankings, Virginia Water in Surrey and Ascot in Berkshire take the bottom two spots. Average property prices cost £1,13,574 and £814,808 respectively. Combined with commutes of over 45-minutes and season tickets costing £3,060 and £4,604, these towns offer few financial advantages over living in London.
Top 25 London Commuter Hotspots for 2019
| Rank | Town | County | Commute Time (mins) | Av. House Price | Season Ticket Price | Life Satisfaction |
| 1 | Cheshunt | Hertfordshire | 26 | £384,248 | £2,288 | 7.92 |
| 2 | Waltham Cross | Hertfordshire | 28 | £390,612 | £2,028 | 7.92 |
| 3 | High Wycombe | Buckinghamshire | 30 | £331,092 | £3,668 | 7.95 |
| 4 | Hatfield | Hertfordshire | 25 | £344,459 | £2,808 | 7.83 |
| 5 | Gravesend | Kent | 23 | £284,497 | £3,616 | 7.76 |
| 6 | Broxbourne | Hertfordshire | 32 | £408,915 | £2,848 | 7.92 |
| 7 | Watford Junction | Hertfordshire | 19 | £416,680 | £3,204 | 7.76 |
| 8 | Basingstoke | Hampshire | 44 | £320,082 | £4,604 | 8.09 |
| 9 | Overton | Hampshire | 55 | £215,395 | £4,740 | 8.09 |
| 10 | Hemel Hempstead | Hertfordshire | 26 | £361,817 | £3,832 | 7.79 |
| 11 | Harlow | Essex | 34 | £297,226 | £2,288 | 7.7 |
| 12 | Didcot Parkway | Oxfordshire | 43 | £311,060 | £5,528 | 8.06 |
| 13 | Purfleet | Essex | 33 | £214,907 | £2,448 | 7.59 |
| 14 | Rayleigh | Essex | 44 | £378,427 | £4,028 | 8 |
| 15 | Potters Bar | Hertfordshire | 18 | £510,539 | £2,220 | 7.65 |
| 16 | Ebbsfleet | Kent | 18 | £339,462 | £4,816 | 7.7 |
| 17 | Walton-on-thames | Surrey | 29 | £574,314 | £3,036 | 7.9 |
| 18 | Staines | Middlesex | 35 | £296,258 | £3,024 | 7.71 |
| 19 | Maidenhead | Berkshire | 21 | £517,804 | £3,188 | 7.75 |
| 20 | Hitchin | Hertfordshire | 30 | £407,644 | £4,068 | 7.82 |
| 21 | Slough | Berkshire | 21 | £354,900 | £2,712 | 7.55 |
| 22 | Epsom | Surrey | 36 | £519,224 | £2,340 | 7.85 |
| 23 | Princes Risborough | Buckinghamshire | 39 | £461,332 | £3,788 | 7.95 |
| 24 | Leighton Buzzard | Bedfordshire | 32 | £300,289 | £4,600 | 7.77 |
| 25 | Baldock | Hertfordshire | 39 | £312,815 | £4,448 | 7.82 |
