A Croydon suburb has become the hottest ticket in town for buying property.

Thornton Heath is the fastest growing property market in London according to research by analysts Hometrack.

Data show houses prices in Thornton Heath rose 14.7 per cent in the year to June, as eye-watering inner London prices pushed buyers out to the fringes.

But estate agents are split on who is actually buying properties in CR7.

Derrick Drummond, from Drummonds Property and Finance, told Bloomberg Business: "It’s more investors looking to buy to rent than people actually wanting to live there.

"Foreign investors are now coming to areas that you wouldn’t have expected to get gentrified."

But Jason Livingstone, branch manager of Barnard and Marcus in Thornton Heath, said the new wave of interest was coming largely from first-time buyers.

He said houses that would have sold for £280,000 a year ago were now going for as much as £330,000 - still a snip compared to neighbouring Streatham or Crystal Palace.

He added: "It's the last affordable place in greater London. Going down London Road, all you can see is development. It's giving people confidence that the area is changing and improving.

"Our phone lines in the office don't stop ringing."