Listz area intelligence

Where is buying a home most affordable?

Compare median sold prices with local resident earnings across England and Wales, separately for each major property type.

308 councilsMeeting the selected sales threshold
100+ salesRequired in 2025
Price ÷ earningsLower means more affordable

This is a council-level affordability indicator, not a mortgage eligibility test. It compares the median semi-detached sold price with annualised resident median weekly earnings. It does not account for deposits, household income, interest rates, taxes or individual circumstances.

Most affordable: Semi-detached

Most affordable council areas
RankCouncil areaRatioMedian priceWeekly earningsChange vs 2024
1North Lincolnshire4.17×£155,000£716-2.56%
2Cumberland4.23×£175,848£800-2.28%
3County Durham4.36×£150,000£661-0.75%
4Stockton-on-Tees4.46×£162,500£700-3.60%
5Redcar and Cleveland4.51×£165,000£703-7.20%
6Barnsley4.54×£175,000£742-4.26%
7Hartlepool4.54×£157,500£667-0.55%
8Middlesbrough4.59×£160,000£671-5.68%
9Darlington4.64×£170,000£705-1.71%
10Doncaster4.69×£170,000£697-1.09%
11Neath Port Talbot4.72×£170,000£693+6.62%
12Carmarthenshire4.73×£180,000£733+1.34%
13Flintshire4.74×£190,000£771-4.46%
14Blackpool4.75×£159,950£648-4.32%
15Bolsover4.81×£170,000£679-9.30%
16North East Lincolnshire4.82×£170,000£6780.00%
17Sunderland4.84×£165,000£655+3.27%
18Northumberland4.87×£185,520£733-5.51%
19Merthyr Tydfil4.91×£174,975£685-13.11%
20Stoke-on-Trent4.96×£168,000£651-4.75%

Least affordable: Semi-detached

Least affordable council areas
RankCouncil areaRatioMedian priceWeekly earningsChange vs 2024
1Wandsworth28.52×£1,507,750£1,017-7.24%
2Haringey26.69×£1,250,000£901-18.25%
3Southwark25.58×£1,250,000£940-9.66%
4Lambeth22.09×£1,087,500£947-5.25%
5Richmond upon Thames19.98×£1,097,500£1,057-4.98%
6Ealing17.75×£746,000£808-8.69%
7Barnet17.31×£815,000£905-2.96%
8Merton16.78×£867,500£994-8.43%
9Lewisham16.45×£763,000£892-3.00%
10Brent15.91×£650,500£786-4.82%
11Kingston upon Thames15.60×£773,179£953-5.27%
12Enfield15.12×£680,000£865-1.27%
13Redbridge14.77×£662,500£862-1.61%
14Waltham Forest14.25×£667,578£901-7.81%
15Sutton14.08×£623,750£852+1.98%
16Harrow14.04×£642,375£880-0.36%
17Elmbridge13.97×£705,000£970+2.08%
18Hillingdon13.47×£565,000£807+1.50%
19Hounslow13.46×£565,000£808-4.22%
20Hertsmere13.41×£615,000£882-2.91%

Methodology and limitations

Ranking measure

2025 median sold price divided by 52 times the 2025 resident median weekly pay. A ratio of 5× means the typical sold price is five times annualised weekly earnings.

Minimum sample

A council needs at least 100 recorded sales of the selected property type. This prevents very small samples from dominating the rankings.

Annual comparison

The change column compares the ratio with 2024 only where that year also has at least 100 sales and usable earnings data.

Coverage

City of London and Isles of Scilly are excluded because usable 2025 resident earnings are unavailable. Flats have fewer eligible Welsh councils because many do not reach 100 sales.

Sources: HM Land Registry Price Paid Data; Office for National Statistics Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings via Nomis; ONS Postcode Directory. Licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.