Local affordability improves in most areas; London remains an outlier
Inverclyde has been identified as the most affordable place in Great Britain for first-time buyers, according to updated local measures from Nationwide that compare typical first-time buyer prices with local earnings.
The lender’s analysis uses house price data from the Land Registry and earnings figures from the Office for National Statistics to calculate house price-to-earnings ratios (HPERs) by local authority. It found that affordability improved across Great Britain over the past year, though the picture varies sharply within regions.
“As shown on the chart below, London continues to have the greatest gap between the most and least affordable areas within the region by a considerable margin,” said Andrew Harvey, senior economist at Nationwide. “Meanwhile, the North has the smallest difference between highest and lowest house price to earnings ratios (HPERs) by local authority area.”
Nationwide said Kensington and Chelsea is the least affordable local authority in Great Britain, with a first-time buyer HPER of 13.9. Oxford was cited as the least affordable area in the Outer South East region, while Cambridge was identified as the least affordable part of East Anglia, where average first-time buyer prices were put at about £400,000.
| Least affordable local authorities | ||
|---|---|---|
| Region | Local authority | HPER |
| London | Kensington & Chelsea | 13.9 |
| Outer SE | Oxford | 8.0 |
| East Anglia | Cambridge | 7.3 |
| Outer Met | Spelthorne | 7.0 |
| S West | South Hams | 6.9 |
| E Mids | Derbyshire Dales | 5.7 |
| W Mids | Stratford-on-Avon | 5.6 |
| N West | Trafford | 5.5 |
| Yorkshire | York | 5.4 |
| Wales | Cardiff | 5.3 |
| Scotland | Midlothian | 4.9 |
| North | Westmorland & Furness | 4.1 |
| Source: Nationwide Building Society | ||
In the Outer Metropolitan region, Spelthorne in Surrey was described as the least affordable local authority, reflecting its status as a commuter area. In the South West, South Hams in Devon was highlighted as particularly stretched, with average prices close to seven times earnings. Other least affordable locations included Derbyshire Dales in the East Midlands, Westmorland & Furness in the North, Stratford-on-Avon in the West Midlands, and York in Yorkshire and the Humber. Cardiff remained the least affordable part of Wales, while in Scotland Midlothian replaced Edinburgh as the least affordable area.
For the most affordable locations, Nationwide said Inverclyde had average first-time buyer house prices at 2.3 times average earnings, and that it was also Scotland’s lowest-priced area at around £100,000.
| Most affordable local authorities | ||
|---|---|---|
| Region | Local authority | HPER |
| Scotland | Inverclyde | 2.3 |
| N West | Burnley | 2.8 |
| North | Hartlepool | 2.9 |
| Yorkshire | Kingston upon Hull | 3.0 |
| Wales | Merthyr Tydfil | 3.3 |
| W Mids | Stoke-on-Trent | 3.4 |
| E Mids | West Lindsey | 3.7 |
| East Anglia | Great Yarmouth | 4.3 |
| Outer SE | Gosport | 4.7 |
| Outer Met | Surrey Heath | 4.8 |
| S West | Swindon | 4.8 |
| London | Bromley | 6.2 |
| Source: Nationwide Building Society | ||
Burnley and Hartlepool were again identified as the most affordable areas in the North West and North regions respectively. Stoke-on-Trent remained the most affordable in the West Midlands, Kingston upon Hull in Yorkshire and the Humber, and West Lindsey in the East Midlands. Great Yarmouth was cited as the most affordable in East Anglia, while Gosport in Hampshire was described as the most affordable in the Outer South East.
Bromley was named the most affordable London borough, though Nationwide noted its house price-to-earnings ratio remained higher than in most local authorities elsewhere in the UK.
Nationwide also examined where affordability improved most over the past year. It said around 70% of local authorities saw an improvement, with some of the largest shifts in London boroughs, partly linked to lower average prices.
| Top 10 improvers | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Region | Local authority | HPER (2024) | HPER (2025) |
| London | Islington | 10.6 | 7.8 |
| London | City of London | 11.1 | 8.4 |
| London | Wandsworth | 10.2 | 8.4 |
| London | Hammersmith & Fulham | 11.9 | 10.6 |
| E Anglia | Norwich | 5.4 | 4.3 |
| London | Barnet | 9.4 | 8.3 |
| London | Hackney | 10.0 | 9.0 |
| Outer Met | Welwyn Hatfield | 7.6 | 6.6 |
| London | Kensington & Chelsea | 14.9 | 13.9 |
| London | Harrow | 8.4 | 7.4 |
| Source: Nationwide Building Society | |||
Outside London, Norwich was highlighted as showing the biggest improvement, with the first-time buyer HPER falling to 4.3 from 5.4 in 2024, which Nationwide attributed to earnings growth. Welwyn Hatfield in Hertfordshire was also said to have improved, with the HPER moving to 6.6 from 7.6 in 2024, reflecting higher earnings and lower average prices.
On deposits, Nationwide assessed the burden of raising a 10% deposit for an average first-time buyer home in each local authority. It said a 10% deposit was £15,000 or less in about 10% of local authorities, while in close to half of areas the typical deposit was between £15,000 and £25,000.
The highest deposit requirements were concentrated in London, with Kensington and Chelsea described as the most difficult borough to save for, reflecting prices above £1 million.
By contrast, many of the lowest deposit requirements were in Scotland, with Inverclyde, East Ayrshire and Aberdeen among the areas where a 10% deposit was described as less burdensome.
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