Developers are on average charging 5% of a new property’s purchase price for an accompanying parking space, according to analysis from Direct Line’s Select Premier Insurance.

The firm cited an extreme case, whereby a parking bay to accompany a new build property in London’s Battersea was being sold for £65,000, 13% of the property’s £500,000 listed purchase price.

In London, researchers found parking spaces were only available and included in the purchase price of a new property 18% of time. In major cities outside London including Leeds, Glasgow and Bristol, parking spaces were included in the purchase price of a new property 67% of the time.

In many cases, developers were found to impose controls even within new build developments, only allowing buyers of large or expensive properties to purchase a parking bay. A new wharf development in Hammersmith for example, only allows parking spaces to be purchased for properties valued at over £1.5 million, while developers in areas of London such as Stratford, Ealing, Greenwich, Elephant & Castle and Wembley Park are restricting spaces in new developments to those buying a property with at least two bedrooms.  The same practice is also applied in cities such as Leeds and Nottingham.

Where parking spaces cannot be purchased, some developers offer annual permits to rent out parking bays.  Spaces in Brixton accompanying new build apartments costing £577,000 were available for just £104 a year, whereas in Bristol, a parking permit to accompany a £425,000 property was available for £1,400.

Select Premier Insurance said there are wide variations even within cities; in Brighton’s Marina Village a permit for a £775,000 property was £250 while elsewhere in the city a space accompanying a £410,000 apartment costs £1,000 a year.

Nick Brabham, head of Select Premier Insurance, said: “Restrictions on the number of parking spaces developers can build to accompany new properties make these slots a hot commodity carrying a premium price point. In many new developments, those purchasing studios or one bedroom homes are denied the opportunity to purchase a space as they are reserved for larger properties.

“As larger scale residential developments are built in urban city centres, traffic volumes will become an increasing issue and planners may restrict the construction of new parking bays even further, making it very difficult for homeowners with vehicles.

“Access to secure parking can sometimes impact on insurance premiums for a vehicle, so people will need to weigh up the potential long term cost savings of purchasing a space carefully.  The limited access to affordable parking spaces in many cities is becoming a serious issue, which is why we are seeing a growth in people renting out their driveways and spaces to other motorists.”