The average city dweller in the UK will need to save up for more than 8 years to afford a down payment on a home and get on the property ladder. However, there is a big difference between cities, and some are cheaper to buy a house in than others.
We’ve calculated how long it takes to save up for a mortgage deposit in 60 cities across the UK. By comparing the average salary in each city with the average local house prices, we’ve worked out how long Brits would take to save for a 15% deposit in their area if they saved 15% of their monthly income in an account with an average savings rate.
| City | Average house price | 15% deposit | Monthly salary after tax | 15% saved per month | How many months for deposit? |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aberdeen | £140,627 | £21,094 | £2,640 | £396 | 4 years 2 months |
| Durham | £129,853 | £19,478 | £2,108 | £316 | 4 years 10 months |
| Kingston upon Hull | £135,019 | £20,253 | £2,135 | £320 | 4 years 11 months |
| Dundee | £153,664 | £23,050 | £2,346 | £352 | 5 years 1 month |
| Stoke-on-Trent | £140,729 | £21,109 | £2,129 | £319 | 5 years 1 month |
| Sunderland | £146,526 | £21,979 | £2,091 | £314 | 5 years 5 months |
| Glasgow | £183,494 | £27,524 | £2,551 | £383 | 5 years 6 months |
| Belfast | £165,949 | £24,892 | £2,230 | £334 | 5 years 8 months |
| Lincoln | £179,272 | £26,891 | £2,244 | £337 | 6 years 1 month |
| Doncaster | £170,716 | £25,607 | £2,133 | £320 | 6 years 1 month |
| Derby | £207,959 | £31,194 | £2,570 | £385 | 6 years 2 months |
| Liverpool | £186,730 | £28,010 | £2,317 | £348 | 6 years 2 months |
| Bradford | £177,733 | £26,660 | £2,171 | £326 | 6 years 3 months |
| Preston | £168,524 | £25,279 | £2,004 | £301 | 6 years 4 months |
| Coventry | £226,991 | £34,049 | £2,693 | £404 | 6 years 5 months |
| Wolverhampton | £197,738 | £29,661 | £2,228 | £334 | 6 years 8 months |
| Wakefield | £204,570 | £30,686 | £2,276 | £341 | 6 years 9 months |
| Newcastle | £200,572 | £30,086 | £2,225 | £334 | 6 years 9 months |
| Wrexham | £196,368 | £29,455 | £2,199 | £330 | 6 years 9 months |
| Swansea | £198,192 | £29,729 | £2,167 | £325 | 6 years 10 months |
| Lancaster | £209,177 | £31,377 | £2,256 | £338 | 6 years 11 months |
| Salford | £213,634 | £32,045 | £2,288 | £343 | 7 years |
| Nottingham | £193,339 | £29,001 | £2,084 | £313 | 7 years |
| Plymouth | £224,419 | £33,663 | £2,277 | £342 | 7 years 4 months |
| Manchester | £243,985 | £36,598 | £2,423 | £363 | 7 years 6 months |
| Southampton | £243,861 | £36,579 | £2,415 | £362 | 7 years 6 months |
| Sheffield | £223,965 | £33,595 | £2,221 | £333 | 7 years 6 months |
| Birmingham | £234,517 | £35,178 | £2,262 | £339 | 7 years 8 months |
| Portsmouth | £259,943 | £38,991 | £2,482 | £372 | 7 years 9 months |
| Perth | £243,545 | £36,532 | £2,321 | £348 | 7 years 9 months |
| Newport | £235,952 | £35,393 | £2,265 | £340 | 7 years 9 months |
| Leeds | £246,187 | £36,928 | £2,300 | £345 | 7 years 11 months |
| Stirling | £256,564 | £38,485 | £2,309 | £346 | 8 years 2 months |
| Peterborough | £248,694 | £37,304 | £2,246 | £337 | 8 years 2 months |
| Gloucester | £253,343 | £38,001 | £2,253 | £338 | 8 years 3 months |
| Norwich | £251,104 | £37,666 | £2,225 | £334 | 8 years 3 months |
| Leicester | £232,324 | £34,849 | £2,069 | £310 | 8 years 3 months |
| Cardiff | £268,405 | £40,261 | £2,334 | £350 | 8 years 5 months |
| Milton Keynes | £325,587 | £48,838 | £2,636 | £395 | 8 years 11 months |
| Chester | £275,035 | £41,255 | £2,243 | £337 | 8 years 11 months |
| Worcester | £271,194 | £40,679 | £2,204 | £331 | 8 years 11 months |
| Edinburgh | £343,520 | £51,528 | £2,541 | £381 | 9 years 8 months |
| York | £320,683 | £48,102 | £2,311 | £347 | 9 years 11 months |
| Exeter | £315,229 | £47,284 | £2,246 | £337 | 10 years |
| Colchester | £312,094 | £46,814 | £2,211 | £332 | 10 years |
| Lichfield | £311,841 | £46,776 | £2,178 | £327 | 10 years 2 months |
| Bristol | £350,927 | £52,639 | £2,430 | £365 | 10 years 3 months |
| Hereford | £302,636 | £45,395 | £2,067 | £310 | 10 years 4 months |
| Bournemouth | £339,845 | £50,977 | £2,291 | £344 | 10 years 6 months |
| Southend-on-Sea | £331,521 | £49,728 | £2,133 | £320 | 10 years 11 months |
| Chelmsford | £394,053 | £59,108 | £2,339 | £351 | 11 years 8 months |
| Canterbury | £389,684 | £58,453 | £2,280 | £342 | 11 years 9 months |
| Brighton and Hove | £427,162 | £64,074 | £2,316 | £347 | 12 years 7 months |
| London | £537,424 | £80,614 | £2,814 | £422 | 12 years 11 months |
| Cambridge | £515,926 | £77,389 | £2,678 | £402 | 13 years |
| Oxford | £498,261 | £74,739 | £2,565 | £385 | 13 years 1 month |
| Bath | £454,062 | £68,109 | £2,337 | £351 | 13 years 1 month |
| Winchester | £492,648 | £73,897 | £2,352 | £353 | 13 years 11 months |
| Chichester | £465,154 | £69,773 | £2,126 | £319 | 14 years 5 months |
| St Albans | £611,592 | £91,739 | £2,454 | £368 | 16 years |
Our research found that Aberdeen is the cheapest city in the UK to buy a house, with an average house price of just £140,627 and a comparatively high yearly salary of £40,672. Those living in Aberdeen can save for 4 years and 2 months on average before buying a house.
Durham also scores highly as the second cheapest city in the UK for buying property. The average house price is the lowest of the cities we looked at, at just £140,627, meaning that you would need just over £21,000 to put down a 15% deposit. The average salary in among the lowest in the list, but the low average house price makes up for this.
Hull comes in as the third cheapest city to buy a house in the UK, with the average buyer taking just under 5 years to save up for a 15% deposit. The average house price is low in Hull, at just £135,019, while the average earnings come in at £31,755 a year. Hull was also awarded as the UK’s City of Culture in 2017!
Another good city to live in if you’re saving up for a deposit on a house is Stoke-on-Trent. The average house price is among the lowest, at £146,526, while a resident in the city will earn £31,651 a year.
Scotland appears again in the cheapest cities to buy a house, with Dundee coming in fifth place. Average yearly earnings are closer to the top end, at £35,489, while the average house price is £153,664.
Matt Mckenna
UK Head of Communications
T: +44 20 8191 8806
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