Jewish residents of a small north London cul-de-sac are less than pleased to see it branded London’s nosiest street.
Statistics released by property price comparison website Zoopla show that residents in Monkville Avenue, NW11, are the most likely in the capital to log on to find out how much their neighbours’ houses are worth — and they’ll discover that a three-bedroom house costs £600,000.
But residents in the road, where 40 per cent of the houses have mezuzot on the doors, were shocked.
“I’m really amazed because we are a very closely-knit road and we all talk to each other,” said Carole West, 66. “We’re not nosey. I haven’t looked to see how much my house is worth but there are people on this road who do.”
June Hanan, 45 — who has lived in the road for five years with her husband and three children — said: “People are interested to see how much their houses are worth. I think people go on the website to see if the road has kept its value.
“We always tell people when there are houses for sale here. I know so many people looking for new houses and it’s nice to have people you know in your street.” Asher Dadia, 38, has just moved from his family home where his father, David, 65, still lives. “Five properties went up for sale in the last year,” he said.
“I think neighbours were interested to see if their houses were worth similar prices.
“I love the road and people think it’s a very nice, quiet area here so it’s pretty popular.”
Susannah Hopkins, a 41-year-old physiotherapist, has lived in the road for more than 20 years. “I’ve never looked at the website,” she said. “I don’t even know how much this house is worth because I’ve never looked to buy or sell.
“I don’t know why people would be interested. If I ever wanted to sell, I’d go to an agent who would value it properly.”
Zoopla CEO Alex Chesterman said: “Residents remain obsessed with the value of their homes. Homeowners are increasingly monitoring their neighbours’ house values, either looking for reassurance that their own property’s value hasn’t fallen by as much, or taking some comfort in the knowledge that they are not alone.”
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