Motherwell is best value for commuters to the capital

A Bank of Scotland study examined house prices in towns within an hour’s commute of Aberdeen, Edinburgh and Glasgow, and measured them against average earnings, both locally and in relation to the nearest city.

Despite being almost 40 miles away, Motherwell topped the Edinburgh list with an average house price of £130,268 compared to £225,133 in the capital.

Motherwell also placed second for Glasgow, Greenock was first with an average house price of £120,927 compared to £161,623 in Scotland’s largest city.

The report on Aberdeen found Arbroath was best value with an average house price of £127,497 compared to £210,522 in the granite city.

A separate study, How Scotland Lives, found a shorter commute to work led to increased happiness, with those with less than a 15-minute journey claiming to be happiest.

Graham Blair, mortgage director at Bank of Scotland, said: “The length of the commute to work is a key factor when deciding where to set up home. Scotland has some great commuter towns where considerable savings on property can be made.

“However, the decision to commute is not one that should be made just on the finances. We know from our How Scotland Lives research that those who don’t have to travel long distances to work are often happier.

“There are many things to take into account when looking for a new home, not just the journey time to work, quality of schools, sense of space and sense of community are also important.”