Historical trend
Trend summary
The UK house price to earnings ratio was 7.1 in 2025, down from a peak of approximately 9.1 in 2022.
Trend
- The ratio rose from around 4x in 2000 to a peak of 9.1x in 2022, before falling to 7.1x in 2025 as house prices declined and earnings grew.
- A ratio of 7.1x means the average home costs approximately seven years of gross average full-time earnings.
- The ratio varies substantially by region: London typically exceeds 12x; many northern and Welsh markets are at 4–6x.
Context
- Calculated as UK average house price (ONS/Land Registry) divided by whole-economy average weekly earnings (ONS AWE, seasonally adjusted) multiplied by 52.
- This measure uses gross (pre-tax) earnings; affordability on a take-home-pay or mortgage-payment basis differs.
Trend summary generated by claude-sonnet-4-6 on 20 May 2026. Contains no editorial judgement — describes direction, magnitude, and official projections only.
OECD comparison
🇩🇪 Germany
6.8 x earnings
🇬🇧 United Kingdom
7.1 x earnings
🇺🇸 United States
7.1 x earnings
🇫🇷 France
9.2 x earnings
🇨🇦 Canada
11 x earnings
🇦🇺 Australia
12 x earnings