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Hackney has seen a bigger leap in residents’ disposable income over the last two decades than anywhere else in Britain, a study has found.

The amount of money locals have left to spend or save after mortgages or rent and taxes has nearly trebled from £6,448 in 1997 to £19,261 today — more than double the UK average, according to data from accountancy firm UHY Hacker Young.

It is yet another sign of the borough’s gentrification, from an area known for its poverty to a destination for hipsters and celebrities.

Among the trendy businesses is foodie hub Mare Street Market , backed by TV chef Gizzi Erskine, and the Rio cinema, where actor Idris Elba proposed to Sabrina Dhowre at a screening this year.

London designer outlets in railway arches revamped by architect David Adjaye include Burberry , Pringle and Matches, while celebrities such as former Doctor Who actress Freema Agyeman, as well as Hackney-born Elba, have helped raise the area’s profile.

In the past two decades Hackney house prices have increased more than in any other local authority, including prime boroughs such as Kensington & Chelsea.

Tech and finance workers at Old Street’s Silicon Roundabout are partly behind the trend, while the extension of the late-night London Overground between New Cross Gate and Dalston Junction last year made nearby apartments even more popular with City bankers.

The average cost of a flat in Hackney is now more than £515,000, making it the 11th most-expensive borough in London. It’s a far cry from Lord Sugar’s adage about growing up in E8.

“When you’re born in Hackney and you do well in life, you move to Chigwell,” the star of The Apprentice said.

Philip Waterfield, director at east London estate agents Strettons, said: “When I started working in Hackney in the mid-1980s, a five-bedroom house in Clapton could be snapped up for £20,000, but buyers had to be brave because it was an area with a history of gang violence.

“Back then we had minor celebrities like Les McKeown of the Bay City Rollers and Christopher Biggins living nearby, but now celebrities and professionals alike are flocking to what is really a large parish on the edge of the City. Values have soared.”

Martin Jones, a partner at UHY Hacker Young, said the statistics have shown “Hackney has become one of the most gentrified places in the UK”.

Another Time Another Place: Hackney in the 70s and 80s 12 show all Another Time Another Place: Hackney in the 70s and 80s 1/12 Another Time Another Place: Hackney in the 70s and 80s Bethnal Green Hospital Neil Martinson 2/12 Another Time Another Place: Hackney in the 70s and 80s Ridley Road Market Neil Martinson 3/12 Another Time Another Place: Hackney in the 70s and 80s Turkish clothing worker Neil Martinson 4/12 Another Time Another Place: Hackney in the 70s and 80s Lesney's Matchbox Factory Neil Martinson 5/12 Another Time Another Place: Hackney in the 70s and 80s Homeless Neil Martinson 6/12 Another Time Another Place: Hackney in the 70s and 80s Hackney Town Hall protest Neil Martinson 7/12 Another Time Another Place: Hackney in the 70s and 80s Hackney Town Hall Neil Martinson 8/12 Another Time Another Place: Hackney in the 70s and 80s Stoke Newington School Neil Martinson 9/12 Another Time Another Place: Hackney in the 70s and 80s Sally Army Neil Martinson 10/12 Another Time Another Place: Hackney in the 70s and 80s Lew Lessen barber Neil Martinson 11/12 Another Time Another Place: Hackney in the 70s and 80s Rachel Point Neil Martinson 12/12 Another Time Another Place: Hackney in the 70s and 80s Bethnal Green Road Neil Martinson 1/12 Another Time Another Place: Hackney in the 70s and 80s Bethnal Green Hospital Neil Martinson 2/12 Another Time Another Place: Hackney in the 70s and 80s Ridley Road Market Neil Martinson 3/12 Another Time Another Place: Hackney in the 70s and 80s Turkish clothing worker Neil Martinson 4/12 Another Time Another Place: Hackney in the 70s and 80s Lesney's Matchbox Factory Neil Martinson 5/12 Another Time Another Place: Hackney in the 70s and 80s Homeless Neil Martinson 6/12 Another Time Another Place: Hackney in the 70s and 80s Hackney Town Hall protest Neil Martinson 7/12 Another Time Another Place: Hackney in the 70s and 80s Hackney Town Hall Neil Martinson 8/12 Another Time Another Place: Hackney in the 70s and 80s Stoke Newington School Neil Martinson 9/12 Another Time Another Place: Hackney in the 70s and 80s Sally Army Neil Martinson 10/12 Another Time Another Place: Hackney in the 70s and 80s Lew Lessen barber Neil Martinson 11/12 Another Time Another Place: Hackney in the 70s and 80s Rachel Point Neil Martinson 12/12 Another Time Another Place: Hackney in the 70s and 80s Bethnal Green Road Neil Martinson

But he claimed the area is still cheap to some. “Many are attracted to the property prices which can often be relatively cheaper than those in some neighbouring areas, most notably Islington,” he said.

Other London boroughs with soaring disposable income are Wandsworth, increasing from £14,000 in 1997 to £37,000 today, and Lewisham, up from £10,000 to £23,000.