PropertyInvesting.net: property investment ideas, advice, insights, trends
Propertyinvesting.net: Property Investment ideas, advice, insights, trends

PropertyInvesting.net: Property Investment News

 Property News

more news articles...

House prices outstripping your salary? The 20 most affordable areas revealed


02-11-2016

,

If you're looking for an affordable home, this is where not to look - and where you can still pick up a home for a (relative) bargain

 
PA Housing
Head north

Commuters in the South East struggled the most to keep up with house prices in 2015, exclusive analysis by The Mirror 's data team has revealed.

Across England and Wales as a whole, homes became 4% less affordable. The average full-time worker in England and Wales would have to spend 7.2 times their salary on the average home.

In London, house hunters must expect to pay up to 20 times their salary on the average home. House prices in commuter belt areas such as Reading, Basildon, Watford and South Cambridgeshire all outpaced wages at an increasing speed.

Northern house hunters did better. Almost all of the most affordable areas were in based in the North West or Wales.

Affordability was calculated using Land Registry and Office for National Statistics data. The average house price was compared to the typical wage for a full-time worker in the area.

Top 20 most affordable places in the UK

If you want to buy a home with as little debt as possible, your best bet is to jump on a train to the North West. While many of Britain's bargains are nestled in the Welsh valleys, urbanites need not despair. Liverpool is on the list, while Wigan is in commuting distance of Manchester.

  1. Copeland
  2. Burnley
  3. Blaenau Gwent
  4. Pendle
  5. Hyndburn
  6. Rhondda, Cynon, Taf
  7. Merthyr Tydfil
  8. County Durham
  9. Neath Port Talbot
  10. Barrow-in-Furness
  11. Hartlepool
  12. Kingston upon Hull
  13. Barnsley
  14. Stoke-on-Trent
  15. North Lincolnshire
  16. St Helens
  17. Liverpool
  18. Sunderland
  19. Wigan
  20. Blackburn with Darwen

How to find an affordable home

Getty Images Member of the Swiss special police force use their binoculars to survey the area from a rooftop at the opening of the World Economic Forum (WEF) annual meeting in Davos, on January 19, 2016.
The house hunt begins

There's no short answer to this, unfortunately - especially if you live in central London. And strict affordability tests mean you can't just take out a massive loan and hope for the best.

But if you think out of the box, you might be able to find your dream home on the right budget.

1. Move

As our data shows, some areas are vastly less affordable than others. Check out this map of the most affordable and least affordable areas of the UK.

2. Team up

You're more likely to be able to afford a mortgage if there's two of you buying it - and that doesn't have to mean getting married. You could buy with a friend or family member instead.

3. Shared ownership

In a shared ownership scheme , you buy a chunk of the property and pay rent on the rest. You can choose to buy more later on. Read this father's story to find out more .

www.mirror.co.uk/

back to top

Site Map | Privacy Policy | Terms & Conditions | Contact Us | ©2018 PropertyInvesting.net