House prices have continued to soar, and even outstripped people’s wage packets in some parts of the country, making it ever more difficult for first-time buyers
People’s homes in one-third of Britain have “earned” more per hour in the past year than their owners – but not in Croydon.
Booming: house prices soared again in most of London in the past year
Research conducted by comparison site, GetAgent.co.uk, looked at the annual change in house price growth across Britain and what this equates to as an average hourly rate for full-time employment. They then looked at how this compares to the actual average hourly rate for full-time employment in each respective area.
The research shows that across Britain, the average property has increased by £32,893 over the last year. This equates to an average hourly rate of £17.28.
At the same time, the average person working full-time has earned £18.84 per hour, out earning their home by just £1.56 per hour.
Homes have out-earned their owners in three regions on an hourly basis over the last year – the South West (+£7.20), the East of England (+£4.68) and the South East (+£3.99).
Analysing the market at local authority level, GetAgent found that the annual rate of house price growth has equated to a higher rate of hourly pay across in 34per cent of local authorities when compared to the actual hourly rate of pay for the average full-time employee.
But not in Croydon. Nor in neighbouring south London boroughs Sutton, Bromley, while in Lambeth, average house prices fell in the 12 months to May 2022.
In Croydon, average house prices rose from £393,858 in May 2021 to £419,335 in May 2020, an increase of £25,477. That works out to an hourly earnings rate of £13.39, while the average rate of earnings in Croydon is £21.34.
House owners in neighbouring Bromley and Sutton also managed to “earn more” through their pay packets than on the property market.
Average house prices in Bromley went from £460,556 to £498,721 between May 2021 and 2022, an increase of £38,165. Or an hourly rate of £20.05 in a borough where average earnings are £25.49 per hour.
In Sutton, average house prices rose from £394,114 to £427,275 – £33,161. That’s an hourly rate of £17.42 when average earnings are £21.61.
In inner London Lambeth, the average house price dropped by £2,707 in the 12 months to May 2022, down to £535,870 – thought to reflect the post-pandemic efforts of many home-owners to find properties away from the crowded city centres (average earnings in Lambeth, according to the ONS, are £24.01 per hour).
In other parts of the country, house prices shot up in 2021: South Hams, in Devon, saw the biggest average house price increase, £79,290 in a year – the equivalent of properties there “earning” £41.66 an hour.
Colby Short, the CEO of GetAgent.co.uk, said: “House prices have boomed during the pandemic, so much so that bricks and mortar is earning more than the average hourly wage in more than one-third of Britain.
“This will be welcome news for those already on the ladder, but it highlights the very tough task facing those yet to achieve this life milestone.
“Not only are house prices climbing at extraordinary rates, but our ability to afford them simply isn’t matching this pace, with the earnings available to the average person remaining largely static.”
Data for the research was sourced from the government’s house price index and from the Office for National Statistics.
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Did the impact of developer free for all have any impact in delivering affordable homes? Not much evidence. Has it increased the number of homes available? Not much evidence, Has it made any difference to anyone who is not a developer or Council Planning officer? Not much evidence about on that – but plenty that those two groups have benefited?
And what about home-owners how has it impacted on them? Many have had detriment to health and wealth but not heard of any who have benefited as yet
Frankly one struggles to see the value of this Council executives activities nor are we getting figures on what is being paid from our cash and assets in debt payments. If they are not working to the benefit of Croydon and it’s residents what use are they?