First-time buyers advised to head north

First-time home buyers should head north, where houses are still within financial reach of people on average local incomes, according to a new study.

Average prices in cities such as Hull, Sunderland and Salford were just under £160,000, around two and a half times the earnings of average local couples.

The job and property search engine Adzuna.co.uk said a study of house prices and earnings in 50 cities showed that Winchester in Hampshire was the least affordable, while Belfast and Hull were the most affordable. Over nine out of 10 houses in Belfast were said to be within financial reach of first-time buyers on average local incomes, compared with just one in four in London, Reading and Guildford. Houses in London have become less affordable over the past year, both for buying and renting, according to the report.

A typical house in Winchester sells for eight times local average incomes at £440,000, said Adzuna. Houses in Northern and Scottish cities continue to be more affordable than those in the South.