The Office for National Statistics (ONS) published its Housing Purchase Affordability, UK: 2024 bulletin on 18 September 2025, covering the financial year ending (FYE) 31 March 20241. Median house price to disposable household income ratios were 7.9 in England, 5.4 in Wales, 5.3 in Scotland and 4.6 in Northern Ireland1. In all four countries, affordability improved in FYE 2024 as ratios decreased compared with the previous year1.
The median home sold for £290,000 in England, £200,000 in Wales, £185,000 in Scotland and £168,000 in Northern Ireland, with average disposable household incomes ranging from £35,000 to £37,0001.
| Nation | Median house price | Median household income | Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| England | £290,000 | £37,000 | 7.9 |
| Wales | £200,000 | £37,000 | 5.4 |
| Scotland | £185,000 | £35,000 | 5.3 |
| Northern Ireland | £168,000 | £36,000 | 4.6 |
Source: ONS, Housing Purchase Affordability, UK: 20241
The ONS said the improvement does not change the longer trend:
"In all four countries, affordability improved in FYE 2024 as ratios decreased compared with the previous year, but this does not change the long-term trend of homes generally being unaffordable in each country since FYE 2006."
Northern Ireland's incomes have risen more quickly than house prices in each of the last five years, making it the only UK country where homes sold for less than five times average household income in FYE 20241. The ONS uses five years of income as a broad indicator of affordability1.
Affordability varied by income within each nation. In England, only the highest-income decile could afford an average-priced home with fewer than five years of income; in Wales and Scotland the top 40% of households could; in Northern Ireland an average home was affordable on an average or higher income1. An average-priced home in England was 13 times a lower-income household's income, compared with 9.2 times in Wales, 7.8 in Scotland and 7.5 in Northern Ireland1.
Within England, London was the least affordable region: an average home was unaffordable for every income decile, and cost the equivalent of 25 years of income for a low-income household, against 8.5 years in the North East1. The ONS also modelled local authority affordability for England and Wales, finding 29 of 317 areas (9.1%) were affordable to those who worked there, the highest proportion since FYE 2004 but below 69.0% in FYE 19991. Blaenau Gwent was the most affordable local authority, at 3.6 times average household income, and Kensington and Chelsea the least, at 35.5 times1.
Why it matters for households
The ratios describe how many years of typical household income an average home costs in each nation, so a fall means the gap narrowed slightly over the year to March 2024. The ONS cautions that incomes are based on survey sample data, so it cannot say whether differences between areas or over time are statistically significant or the result of natural sample variation1. It also notes that its local authority figures are official statistics in development, using modelled incomes, and that caution should be used with year-on-year changes1. The bulletin focuses on household income rather than individual earnings, and the ONS says its separate Housing affordability in England and Wales bulletin remains the official source for local housing policy and needs assessment1.
What happens next
The ONS lists its next release in this series for between August and October 20261.
Sources1 cited
- Housing Purchase Affordability, UK ons.gov.uk
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