Buyers in central London have to pay on average £450,000 more for their home than those who live just one hour away, new research suggests.

The average cost of a property in zones 1 and 2 in the capital now stands at a staggering £722,000. By contrast, homes in towns that are an hour's commute from the centre, such as Crawley, Colchester, Newbury and Chatham, cost £272,000 on average.

The research, which was carried out by Lloyds Bank and based on data from the Land Registry, found that travelling just 20 minutes could net you a house at just half the price.

Commuters from towns such as Ilford, St Albans and East Croydon typically cost £321,000 less than in central London.

But while house prices in the capital are generally far higher than in surrounding towns, the same is not true for Britain's second and third largest cities.

The average house price in Birmingham is about £162,000, yet several towns about 40 minutes rail journey away - including Walsall, Wolverhampton, Coventry, Burton on Trent and Leamington Spa - cost £175,000 on average.

Similarly, towns like Warrington, Chorley, Huddersfield and Macclesfield have a higher house price (£168,000) than in Manchester (£151,330).

Aside from the additional travel time, a key downside of commuting is the hefty travel costs: Lloyds estimates these can be as high as £5,000 a year into London - money that could have been invested into your home instead if you lived in the city.

Andrew Mason, mortgages director at Lloyds Bank, suggested people looking to commute consider more than just the financial implications.

He said: "It's no surprise, for London at least, that the further you commute the larger the difference in house prices - though, of course, the journey also gets longer and more expensive.

"The decision to commute is not simply a trade-off between financial costs and journey times.

"Quality of life is an important consideration and in nearly all towns in this survey housing affordability is significantly better with a London salary compared to what can be earned locally."