A new study has revealed ‘pockets of affordability” for first-time buyers, where 90% of two-bedroom homes can be accessed by those on the average salary.
Affordability hotspots include Stoke-on-Trent, parts of Southampton and Portsmouth as well as Gloucester and Plymouth in the South West and Grimsby in Yorkshire.
Reallymoving’s interactive Home Affordability Map can help first-time buyers see where they may be able to buy a home, using their budget and the number of bedrooms they need.
The map shows the locations in each region, within a 60-minute commute of a major town or city, where the average first-time buyer budget can afford the highest proportion of two-bedroom properties for sale – often more than 90%.
Hotspots everywhere
While in cheaper regions, it is relatively easy to pinpoint these spots, with 99% of properties within an hour of Grimsby in budget, the map also highlights affordable areas in more expensive parts of the UK. For example, Erith in the London borough of Bexley has 92% of two-bedroom homes in budget, and Barking in the London borough of Barking and Dagenham has 90%.
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The map follows figures from Skipton showing glimmers of hope for first-time buyers, thanks to rising wages and slower house price growth. The index forecasts that first-time buyer affordability will improve from 12.1% in 2025 to 14.4% by the end of 2028 – meaning that roughly 125,000 more first-time buyers could enter the market.
Rob Hougton, founder and CEO of Reallymoving, said: “With affordability stretched and mortgage rates still high, first-time buyers are under a great deal of pressure and many will assume they’ve been priced out of the market altogether. But affordability is much more localised than most people realise.
“By expanding their search by just a few miles and prioritising locations where they can access a wider pool of homes, first-time buyers might be surprised at how much of the market they can access.
“Most of the hotspots we’ve identified are within established towns and cities, but buyers with hybrid or home working flexibility can unlock even greater buying power by searching further afield from major stations and transport hubs.
“It’s very much a buyers’ market at the moment and there are deals to be had at every price point – particularly with more landlords selling up as a consequence of the Renters’ Rights Act. By ensuring they’re searching in locations where they have plenty of choice, first-time buyers have much better chance of finding a suitable property and negotiating a good deal.”
| Region | Average
Budget (2-bed) |
Hotspot 1
(% 2-beds in budget)
|
Hotspot 2
(% 2-beds in budget) |
Hotspot 3
(% 2-beds in budget) |
| East Midlands | £168,000 | Mansfield (NG20), 78% | Nottingham (NG6), 63% | Leicester (LE1), 62% |
| East | £262,000 | Great Yarmouth (NR30), 94% | Ipswich (IP2), 92% | Wisbech (PE13), 91% |
| London | £426,000 | Erith (DA8), 92% | Barking (IG11), 90% | Belvedere (DA17), 89% |
| North East | £110,000 | Middlesbrough (TS1), 96% | Shildon (DL4), 95% | Peterlee (SR8), 81% |
| North West | £168,000 | Burnley (BB11), 98% | Anfield (L4), 98% | Stockbridge Village (L28), 96% |
| N Ireland
|
£152,000 | Craigavon (BT65), 90% | Maghera (BT46), 86% | Belfast (BT12), 84% |
| Scotland | £159,000 | Greenock (PA15), 99% | Stevenston (KA20), 97% | Glasgow (G34), 96% |
| South East | £272,000 | Southampton (SO17), 92% | Portsmouth (PO2), 84% | Milton Keynes (MK6), 82% |
| South West
|
£224,000 | Gloucester (GL1), 84% | Plymouth (PL4), 81% | Portland (DT5), 70% |
| Wales | £164,000 | Tonypandy (CF40), 94% | Mountain Ash (CF45), 94% | Maesteg (CF34), 87% |
| West Midlands | £171,000 | Stoke-on-Trent (ST1), 95% | Birmingham (B6), 83% | Telford (TF7), 81% |
| Yorkshire & Humber | £154,000 | Grimsby (DN31), 99% | Bradford (BD3) 97% | Sheffield (S4) 97% |