Coronavirus triggers up to one Fife residents to move house

One in 12 people in Kirkcaldy and Cowdenbeath moved house because of the coronavirus pandemic, a new survey suggests.
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Research by the think tank Demos asked 20,000 adults in parliamentary constituencies across Great Britain how the Covid-19 crisis had affected where they want to live.

In Kirkcaldy and Cowdenbeath, 8% of people surveyed last December said they had recently moved house or were planning on doing so for reasons related to the pandemic.

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The survey showed a further 5% of residents were thinking about moving house because of the pandemic, though they had no solid plans yet.

The pandemic has had an impact on people's plans to move house in FifeThe pandemic has had an impact on people's plans to move house in Fife
The pandemic has had an impact on people's plans to move house in Fife

The vast majority of people (72%) were not thinking of relocating.

In north-east Fife the figure was more than one in 20 - 7% of those surveyed.

A similar figure also emerged for Glenrothes.

Across Great Britain, the figure was 9%.

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The Chartered Institute of Housing said many people have re-evaluated where and how they want to live, as lockdown highlighted the importance of affordable, well-located, good quality housing.

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Melanie Rees, head of policy and external affairs, said: "Increased working from home has meant that people don’t need to be within daily commuting distance of work.

"Moving out of urban centres where house prices are high can mean that people can afford bigger, better quality housing in more pleasant surroundings.

"We have to think about the impact of this on people already living in an area who might find themselves priced out of renting or owning a home due to the house-price inflation caused by people moving in with more money to spend."

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