Commuter frontier is pushed back as more opt for longer rail journeys

The trend is boosting house prices on the outer edge of the commuter zone in areas that were once regarded as beyond the influence of London's property market, according to a report by estate agent Savills.

It shows that house prices in towns with 80 to 120-minute rail journeys from central London are now rising much faster than those closer in.

At the same time, the number of London workers living in these outposts of commuter land is steadily rising - by an average of nine per cent a year.

This spread of the commuter belt, which used to be restricted to the inner Home Counties, is partly due to changing employment patterns as many more people now work part of the week at home and travel to the capital perhaps only two or three times a week, making a longer commute more acceptable.

Another trend is for well-paid workers, often in the City, to buy a flat in London to stay in during the week and have a family home elsewhere.

According to Savills many London families want to "export their equity", giving themselves a more relaxed life in the country but without giving up the jobs that make them comfortably well off.

It cited Ely in Cambridgeshire, Pewsey in Wiltshire, and Castle Cary in Somerset as areas that would suit those who want to live in the country and can work at home part of the week.

Studies have shown that the distance to work commuters are prepared to tolerate has grown steadily. About one million workers now travel more than 30 miles, almost double the figure of 15 years ago.

Savills predicts that the trend will continue with the limits of commuterland pushed further out.

Towns a long way from London but already with a high number of commuters include Brockenhurst in Hampshire (fastest journey time 92 minutes) and King's Lynn in Norfolk (quickest time 97 minutes). The fastest rate of growth in property prices over the past five years has been on the Norwich to Liverpool Street route, where values have gone up by almost 50 per cent. Next came Newark to King's Cross and Canterbury to Victoria.

John Young, head of country houses for Humberts, said: "What is different now is that London prices have risen disproportionately. People sell for £2 million, and buy for £1.25 million. They want a house with five bedrooms, a pony paddock, no more than 25 minutes from a good school, 10 minutes from the station, and for that they will accept a two-hour journey."

This growth is concentrated on routes north and east of the capital, in contrast to the late Nineties when homes in towns west and south-west of London gained most in value.

The trend will be accelerated by major improvements to rail services, such as the £5.5 billion upgrade of the north-south Thameslink route, announced this week.

Douglas McWilliams of the Centre for Economics and Business Research said such investment meant more people would be prepared to put up with long-distance commuting.