Exeter among top 5 places to be a graduate in UK
The top five Graduate Hot Spots 2017 are:
1. Leeds
2. Liverpool
3. Exeter
4. Durham
5. London
The two worst areas for graduates to live are:
1. Bath
2. Canterbury
One year on from the first Graduate Hotspots 2016 report, TheHouseShop.com, have identified the best places in the UK for graduates to live. As students approach graduation and start to take in the harsh realities of “adulthood” hitting them soon, finding the best place to live is often the furthest thing from their minds.
That’s why TheHouseShop.com have made it that much easier for soon-to-be graduates to take their next steps in life, by tracking down the best Graduate Hot-Spots across the UK.
Exeter has made it into this year’s top five, at a very respectable third place, due to its affordable cost of living and high average graduate salary.
We have also created a handy infographic summarising the results, with an embed code which can be viewed here: www.thehouseshop.com/graduate-hot-spots-2017
Ranking factors for TheHouseShop’s Graduate Hot-Spots 2017 report include: average graduate salary, average rental prices, house price affordability, cost of living, job availability and price of a pint, among others.
Nick Marr, Co-Founder TheHouseShop.com said: “Deciding where to live after graduation is a very important step in a young person’s life, and choosing where to set down roots after university can be a daunting prospect.”
“For the second year in a row, our Graduate Hot-Spots report has shown that students shouldn’t be blinded by the bright lights of London and should look further afield for the best quality of life. With its low travel costs, high average graduate salary, affordable cost of living and picturesque location close to the sea, Exeter is a fantastic place to live and work for soon-to-be graduates and is a deserving winner as this year’s third place spot.”
“We can’t discuss the best without mentioning the worst performing areas in the UK for graduates to live. Bath and Canterbury both had a low average graduate salary compared to other areas and when combined with high housing prices, these areas won’t offer graduates the best start in life.” - Nick Marr, Co-founder TheHouseShop.com
Third Place - Exeter
Key Stats:
• 1st place for weekly travel pass costing just £7.00
• 6th cheapest for basic monthly utilities £97.32
• 7th place for average graduate salary £25,000
• 14th place for cost of living
• 19.7% 16 - 24 year olds in the area
Earning a respectable third place overall, Exeter earned mid-range rankings for many of our categories, but outperformed the rest for cheapest travel with a weekly travel card costing just £7.00!
Exeter came in joint seventh place for average graduate salary, alongside our winner Leeds, giving grads a solid monthly take-home pay of £1,632.89 per month. However, you won’t be taking home anything come pay-day if you can’t find a job! As Exeter fell down in the number of graduate jobs available with just a measly 193 within a ten mile radius of the city.
Exeter came middle of the road for property prices, with the average rent of a two bed home costing £822 pcm, and the average rent of a four bed home costing £1,414 pcm. On top of monthly rent, graduates thinking of living in Exeter will have to be prepared for a higher than average cost of living in general, but this can be offset slightly by cheaper basic utilities, costing just £97.32 per month.
No. 1 - Leeds
Key Stats
• 3rd place for average 4 bed rental price at £1,135 pcm (£283.75 per tenant)
• 4th place average sale price of a 2 bed home at £140,725
• 6th overall for average two bed rental price £715 pcm (£357.50 per tenant)
• 7th place average graduate salary £25,000
• Monthly income after tax - £1,632.89
No. 2 - Liverpool
Key Stats:
• 2nd for average two bed rental price at just £589 per month
• 3rd place for number of graduate jobs available at 1,097
• 4th overall for cheapest pint costing only £2.75
• 5th place for WiFi speed at 34.68 Mb per second
• 7th for average cost of WiFi at £18.98 per month
• 6th place for cost of living
No. 4 - Durham
Key Stats:
• 3rd place for average four bed rental price £1,122 pcm (£280.50 per tenant)
• 4th place for average two bed rental price £670 pcm (£355 per tenant
• 5th place cost of weekly travel card £13.00
• 6th overall for average two bed sale price £153,091
• In the worst 5 areas for average WiFi cost at £23.97 per month
No. 5 - London
Key Stats:
• 1st place for number of graduate jobs available at 9,914
• 1st place for average graduate salary at £29,000
• Last place for average two bed rental price £2,585 pcm (£1,292.50 per tenant)
• Last for average four bed rental price £4,953 pcm (1,238.25 per tenant)
And the worst cities in the UK for graduates to live are….
Bath
Bath came in last place for having the highest cost of living at 86.74 out of all twenty five cities, leaving graduates with a less disposable income and savings potential. Bath continued to prove an expensive city for graduates to live in, with steep property prices in both the rental and sales areas of the property market. The average rent for a 2 bed property is £1,192 pcm, whereas the average price of a two bed home is £420,038 which both came in the bottom worst five.
Canterbury
The famous cathedral town in Kent also performed badly with the lowest earning potential for graduates of just £11,400 coming in last place. Canterbury also has high housing prices, with the average rental price of a two bed home costing £1,073 pcm, in 18th place overall and the four bed homes not doing much better, at £1,423 pcm, 10th. When the low graduate earning potential is taken into account with the higher than average housing prices, Canterbury is a very expensive area for graduates to live in.
