UK & US: The Luckiest Places to Live in 2021
16-06-2021 | Landlord NewsWe have all dreamed about winning a lottery someday and what we might do with our lives if we were to be struck with such a massive amount of luck. But have you ever wondered where your chances of getting that winning ticket are the highest?
In an effort to reveal the luckiest, – and unluckiest – cities, a new study by CIA Landlords highlights the places across the UK and the USA where you’re most likely to find a pot of gold across the rainbow.
Birmingham Revealed As The UK’s Luckiest Postcode
Our research found that those living in Birmingham have the highest chance of winning in lotteries. Residents of this Midlands city have seen a shocking number of luckily strikes: 769 Postcode Lottery Wins, as well as 6662 wins in the National Lottery. With the average price of a house in Birmingham being under the average UK price at £219,504, anyone should try their luck here. All things considered, this city scores a whopping 10 out of 10 in our index.
Following suit in second place is another Midlands city: Nottingham. People here also have seen 6662 wins in the National Lottery, as well as 544 wins in the Postcode Lottery. Combined with the affordability of living in Nottingham, the city is awarded an 8.7 out of 10 in our ranking.
Not far off taking home third place is Manchester in the North West. Residents have won the Postcode Lottery 564 times over the years and saw an additional 5758 National Lottery wins. With a final score of 8.1 out of 10, their third place is well deserved.
Rank |
Postcode |
Region |
Number of Postcode Wins |
Number of National Lottery Wins |
Cost of Living (£) |
Average House Price (£) |
Overall Score |
| 1 | B (Birmingham) | Midlands | 769 | 6662 | £2,228.81 | £219,504 | 10.0 |
| 2 | NG (Nottingham) | Midlands | 544 | 6662 | £2,336.45 | £229,355 | 8.7 |
| 3 | M (Manchester) | North West | 564 | 5758 | £2,385.28 | £219,610 | 8.1 |
| 4 | LE (Leicester) | Midlands | 395 | 6662 | £2,076.53 | £255,583 | 7.8 |
| 5 | CV (Coventry) | Midlands | 380 | 6662 | £2,214.38 | £228,976 | 7.7 |
| 6 | ST (Stoke-on-Trent) | Midlands | 344 | 6662 | £1,071.67 | £168,555 | 7.5 |
| 7 | PO (Portsmouth) | South East | 409 | 6171 | £2,290.31 | £257,436 | 7.5 |
| 8 | BN (Brighton) | South East | 384 | 6171 | £2,651.09 | £438,238 | 7.4 |
| 9 | DE (Derby) | Midlands | 296 | 6662 | £2,265.49 | £220,835 | 7.2 |
| 10 | S (Sheffield) | Yorkshire | 608 | 4281 | £2,174.75 | £216,034 | 7.2 |
Study Shows Belfast Is The UK’s Most Unlucky Postcode
“BT” is officially the unluckiest postcode in the UK. Residents of the city of Belfast are least likely to win in lotteries according to our study. The postcode has never seen a win in the Postcode Lottery ever, and just 921 wins in the National Lottery. Additionally, housing prices here are way higher than the other 9 most unlucky cities at an average of £351,043, making Belfast probably one of the least appealing places to live if you want to make big bucks.
Whilst Zetland (ZE) in the North East might have rather cheap homes, £177,786 on average, it definitely isn’t the place to be for those hoping to get a lucky ticket. This postcode has only seen 9 Postcode Lottery wins over the years and 2371 National Lottery winners.
The third-unluckiest postcode is revealed to be Llrindod Wells (LD), with only 26 Postcode Lottery winners ever and even less National Lottery wins than Zetland with 2365 so far. Overall, this postcode gets an overall score of 2.3 in our study.
| Rank | Postcode | Region | Number of Postcode Wins | Number of National Lottery Wins | Cost of Living (£) | Average House Price (£) | Overall Score |
| 1 | BT (Belfast) | Northern Ireland | 0 | 921 | £2,112.86 | £351,043 | 1.0 |
| 2 | ZE (Zetland) | North East | 9 | 2371 | £1,603.54 | £177,786 | 2.2 |
| 3 | LD (Llrindod Wells) | Wales | 26 | 2365 | £2,239.58 | £221,760 | 2.3 |
| 4 | SR (Sunderland) | North East | 132 | 2371 | £2,166.21 | £155,911 | 2.9 |
| 5 | DH (Durham) | North East | 148 | 2371 | £1,603.54 | £168,715 | 3.0 |
| 6 | DL (Darlington) | North East | 235 | 2371 | £1,603.54 | £170,783 | 3.5 |
| 7 | HS (Outer Hebrides) | Scotland | 27 | 3945 | £2,261.01 | £179,265 | 3.5 |
| 8 | KW (Kirkwall) | Scotland | 31 | 3945 | £2,261.01 | £157,254 | 3.6 |
| 9 | NP (Newport) | Wales | 267 | 2365 | £2,213.20 | £199,572 | 3.7 |
| 10 | TD (Galashiels (Tweeddale) | Scotland | 81 | 3945 | £2,261.01 | £157,730 | 3.8 |
Not Las Vegas Nevada, But Albany New York Is The American Place To Be For Lucky Winners
If you like winning, you may be better off relocating to New York state rather than hitting up the Las Vegas strip. According to our research, this state sees the highest number of wins in the United States. Over the years, residents of this state have seen 39 Mega Million Jackpot winners and 12 Power Ball Jackpot winners. The average price of a house in the state of New York is however on the higher side, with an average of $313,700.
The second-luckiest Americans live in California, following New York closely with 39 Mega Million Jackpot winners and 9 Power Ball Jackpot winners. On the downside, however, is the fact that the price tag of a Californian home is the highest in the entire country with an average of $505,000.
Ranking third in our index of the luckiest states is the state of Indiana, where residents have won 2 Mega Million Jackpots and 39 Power Ball Jackpots. Unlike the first and second-ranking states, homes in Indiana are on average a lot more affordable. This state has an average property price tag of $141,700, as well as a lower cost of living of just below $2,000 on average.
| Rank | Region | State Capital | Mega Million Jackpot Winners | Power Ball Jackpot Winners | Lucky for Life | Cost of Living ($) | Average House Price ($) | Overall score |
| 1 | New York | Albany | 39 | 12 | 0 | $2,250 | $313,700 | 17.3 |
| 2 | California | Sacramento | 34 | 9 | 0 | $2,666 | $505,000 | 14.7 |
| 3 | Indiana | Indianapolis | 2 | 39 | 0 | $1,926 | $141,700 | 14.0 |
| 4 | Missouri | Jefferson City | 2 | 31 | 17 | $2,062 | $157,200 | 12.4 |
| 5 | New Jersey | Trenton | 25 | 11 | 0 | – | $335,600 | 12.3 |
| 6 | Michigan | Lansing | 18 | 5 | 39 | $2,396 | $154,900 | 10.5 |
| 7 | Ohio | Columbus | 20 | 3 | 26 | $1,922 | $145,700 | 9.7 |
| 8 | Minnesota | Saint Paul | 0 | 22 | 16 | $2,948 | $223,900 | 8.7 |
| 9 | Georgia | Atlanta | 16 | 6 | 0 | $2,207 | $176,000 | 7.7 |
| 10 | Pennsylvania | Harrisburg | 3 | 18 | 0 | $2,005 | $180,200 | 7.3 |
Methodology:
Results for the UK
We used the results from the postcode lottery and the regional results from the national lottery to find the luckiest postcode. An index out of 10 was applied to both of these metrics, where the higher the results the better the score. This index was then averaged to create a ranking
We also found the cost of living and average house price for the different areas were – if the results were not available then an average for that region was taken
Results for the US
We used the results from Powerball Jackpot Winners, Mega Million winners and Lucky for life winners to find the luckiest state. An index out of 10 was applied to both of these metrics, where the higher the results the better the score. This index was then averaged to create a ranking.
We then found the state capital for each state to work out the cost of living and average house price. Where COL wasn’t available for cities, we used the nearest available one. These were Jefferson City (Columbia), Annapolis (Baltimore) and Montpelier (Burlington). The cities in brackets are the ones that were used
Sources
We won't be beaten on any like for like landlord insurance quote.
Get a quote