Housing affordability in the South West of England

Sinnett, Danielle; Fouad, Zaky; McClymont, Katie; Hickman, Hannah; Loveday, Cat; Hall, Stephen; Windemer, Rebecca; Lamond, Jessica

Abstract

The South West faces acute problems of housing affordability. The region is conspicuously less affordable than England as a whole, and the North and Midlands in particular. These inter-regional disparities are becoming progressively more pronounced.
• The South West is the fourth least affordable region in England for all property types (after London, South East and the East of England). In 2021, median house prices were approximately ten times greater than the median earnings.
• The South West is becoming less affordable over time. In 1997, median house prices were approximately four times greater than the median earnings. Affordability ratios in the South West (plus London, South East and the East of England) continue to be above the English median, and the gap is widening.
• Three quarters (22 out of 29) of local authority areas in the South West have affordability ratios higher than that for England as a whole, and all have affordability ratios higher than those for the North East, North West, and Yorkshire and the Humber.
• There is substantial diversity in affordability ratios between local authority areas in the South West, varying from 7.3 in Plymouth (a ratio that is still higher than those for North East, North West, and Yorkshire and the Humber) to 15.8 in Cotswolds District.
• There is also substantial diversity in affordability ratios within local authority areas in the South West. The ten least affordable neighbourhoods in the South West have median house prices more than 28.3 times median earnings, these are in the Bath and North
East Somerset, Cotswolds, Cornwall, Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole. Even in the most affordable neighbourhoods of Plymouth and Gloucester median house prices are still more than three times median earnings.
• This is the first time that a granular assessment of affordability has been provided for the region, and it demonstrates the variation within local authorities. This is likely to be particularly important in larger, rural authorities where it might be more challenging to commute to home and other services.

• Report Type: Research Report
• Acceptance Date: Mar 9, 2023
• Online Publication Date: Mar 10, 2023
• Publication Date: Mar 10, 2023
• Deposit Date: Mar 17, 2023
• Publicly Available Date: Mar 20, 2023
• Keywords: Housing; Housing affordability
• Public URL: https://uwe-repository.worktribe.com/output/10559101
• Publisher URL: https://homesforthesouthwest.co.uk/home/affordability-report/
• Related Public URLs: https://homesforthesouthwest.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/Housing-affordability-in-the-South-West-of-England-H4SW.pdf