Despite hugely improved transport links and an increasingly transient population moving all over the country for work and family reasons, over 55% of homeowners live within 15 miles of their hometown.

Data from the latest Satisfaction Survey carried out has revealed that the pull of people’s roots is strong, with 31% of homeowners currently living in the town or city they consider to be their hometown. Nearly a quarter of those (23%) have always lived in their hometown, while the remaining 8% moved back after living away for a period.

Younger homeowners – those aged 18-24 - are more likely to live closer to their home town, despite this demographic often being seen as more mobile and less tied to one place than their older siblings, parents or grandparents.

Some 73% of homeowners aged 18-24 live within 15 miles of their home town, in comparison to 61% of homeowners aged 25-34 and under half (46%) of homeowners aged 65 and over. What’s more, the average homeowner aged 18-24 lives only 37 miles from their home town, which is significantly closer than any other generation.

Family ties, a sense of familiarity and cheaper property prices in regional towns may be part of the reason for younger homeowners staying put. The vast majority of 18-24 homeowners would have been first-time buyers, so it’s perhaps little surprise that they didn’t want to venture too far when purchasing their first property.

Nearly two thirds (63%) of those buying a home for the first time live within 15 miles of the town they were raised in, while more than 30% currently live in it. Those owners moving back to their home town, meanwhile, are likely to be making this move for their third property, having moved away for career purposes or other reasons. 

They may have a family – or be about to start a family – and want to move back to an area they know well, where members of their own family already reside. They may also want their own parents to be nearby to aid with childcare. 

The survey, which spoke to more than 5,000 homeowners, aims to give a deeper insight into the average UK homeowner and their thoughts, motivations and future ambitions.

Clearly, living close by to a home town or city plays a key role in the searches carried out by owners or would-be purchasers, in particular younger buyers. It could simply be a case of familiarity and better the devil you know, or it could be key selling factors such as high-performing schools or good, wide-ranging transport links that are keeping them where they are.

For a small minority, though, getting as far away from their home town as possible is top of the agenda. Some 7% of homeowners live 51-100 miles away from their home town, 6% live 101-200 miles, 5% 201-250 miles and 4% 250+miles. For 7.5% of people, there is nowhere that they identify with as a home town. When some people are young, they move around on a regular basis and never have the opportunity to put proper roots down anywhere.

People in the North East – an area known for its tight-knit families and lively community spirit – are most likely to live closer to home, often to be near to family and friends. Overall, 71% of homeowners in the North East live within 15 miles of their hometown, the highest total of any region in the UK.

By contrast, the South West – a more remote, sparsely populated part of the country where job opportunities tend to be in shorter supply – has the fewest number of homeowners (44%) living within 15 miles of their hometown. People in this part of the world also travel further than any other when purchasing a home, with homeowners moving an average distance of 166 miles to buy.

It is, of course, important to understand what influences and motivates homebuyers - from location (rural or urban?) and cost to the importance of local amenities and transport links. This isn’t just useful information for sellers looking to target their properties towards buyers, but also house builders too – who will be able to better understand where to build new homes and what type of homes these should be.

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