Housing affordability ratio eases to 10-year low: ONS

Housing affordability improved across England and Wales in 2025, the latest ONS data shows. 

Since 2021, median earnings across England and Wales have increased by 25% while median house prices have risen slower at 5%, leading to improved housing affordability.

This trend has continued in the latest year, with average earnings increasing by £1,580 (4.0%) while the median price of homes sold in England and Wales increased by £5,000 (1.7%).

As a result, in 2025 the average home in England, at £300,000, cost 7.6 times the median annual average earnings of a full-time employee (£39,300). In Wales, the average home (£213,000) was 6.0 times the median annual average earnings (£35,800).

Since the affordability ratio peaked in 2021, affordability has been improving in England and Wales. The 2025 affordability ratio for England (7.6) is the lowest since 2015, while in Wales (6.0) it has returned to levels similar to the ratios in 2015 to 2020. 

The data shows that housing affordability has improved in two-thirds of local authorities in England and Wales (213 areas) and worsened in 103 (32%) since 2024.

The most affordable local authorities in 2025 were Hyndburn and Kingston upon Hull, both with an affordability ratio of 4.1. The least affordable was Kensington and Chelsea at 25.2.

Mary-Lou Press, president of NAEA Propertymark, commented: “The latest data from the Office for National Statistics shows signs of improving housing affordability in many areas across England and Wales as earnings begin to outpace house price growth.

“However, from a property professional’s perspective, this reflects a market that is stabilising rather than fully recovering. Affordability remains stretched by historic standards, particularly for first-time buyers, and significant regional disparities continue to shape access to home ownership.

“Alongside the data, the ONS’s housing affordability calculator is a valuable tool for prospective and current homeowners when figuring out their finances and researching their next home move. It also highlights how these pressures vary at a local level, reinforcing the need for targeted solutions.

“Wider global economic uncertainty and geopolitical unrest also have the potential to influence inflation, interest rates and supply chains, which could impact future housing affordability and market stability.

“Ultimately, without a sustained increase in housing supply and continued support for buyers, affordability challenges will remain a key issue across both the sales and rental markets.”