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Despite interest rate cuts and earnings growing by 3.7 per cent in the past year, the cost of buying a house is out of reach for many, who will have to rent.
This sad state of affairs presents an opportunity for landlords ready to take action regarding compliance and other measures imposed by Labour.
Buy-to-let mortgages are at the cheapest rates for many months, and queues of potential tenants are spilling onto the streets from letting agent offices.
Property portal Zoopla has published the results of serious number crunching to identify the towns and cities with the most affordable homes and best returns on investment.
The research revealed that property values are up to 5.8 times higher than the average annual household income for buyer couples in London. In contrast, the cheapest properties are 2.1 times the income in the Northeast.
The data's simple message is to look north for the cheapest homes to buy. The farther from London landlords go, the more affordable the homes.
This is especially true in the Northeast, where investors can buy six average-priced homes and rent them for around £4,200 or £700 a month each, compared to one in London attracting £2,200 a month rent.
Region | Average house value (Oct 24) | 2024 value-to-earnings ratio | 2023 value-to-earnings ratio | YoY change | Average monthly regional rent |
London | £560,800 | 5.8 | 6.0 | 3.40% | £2,200 |
South East | £408,400 | 4.9 | 5.1 | 4.80% | £1,421 |
East of England | £364,700 | 4.4 | 4.6 | 4.80% | £1,301 |
South West | £326,500 | 4.3 | 4.5 | 4.90% | £1,197 |
West Midlands | £245,900 | 3.4 | 3.4 | 2.10% | £1,020 |
East Midlands | £241,100 | 3.2 | 3.4 | 4.00% | £891 |
Wales | £215,400 | 3.1 | 3.1 | 2.00% | £911 |
North West | £209,700 | 2.9 | 3.0 | 2.60% | £1,069 |
Yorkshire and The Humber | £199,500 | 2.8 | 2.9 | 4.30% | £904 |
North East | £146,500 | 2.1 | 2.2 | 1.60% | £709 |
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Great Britain average | £307,600 | 3.8 | 3.9 | 3.70% | £1,162 |
Source: Zoopla and Homelet
Region | Postal town | Average house value (Oct 24) |
North East | Shildon | £73,200 |
Wales | Ferndale | £101,600 |
Yorkshire and The Humber | Hull | £119,800 |
North West | Workington | £123,700 |
West Midlands | Stoke-On-Trent | £139,200 |
East Midlands | Gainsborough | £170,000 |
East of England | Wisbech | £209,800 |
South West | Plymouth | £222,200 |
South East | Dover | £250,000 |
London | Croydon | £417,800 |
Source: Zoopla
The Zoopla report says: “Over the last 12 months, house prices fell by two-thirds in Southern England, excluding London, with the most significant improvements in affordability in the South East, South West and East. Wisbech in Cambridgeshire and the coastal towns of Dover and Great Yarmouth are the most affordable places to buy in the south.
In London, Croydon. Greenwich, Barking and Dagenham are among the most affordable places to buy.