Pay vs Place

Ashford vs Reading: buying or renting a home

A typical terraced house costs £60,000 (21%) more in Reading than in Ashford. Measured against local pay, buying is harder in Reading: it takes 8.5× median annual pay, against 7.6× in Ashford.

Ashford, terraced
£285,000
Income typically needed: £57,000
Median full-time pay: £37,440
Reading, terraced
£345,000
Income typically needed: £69,000
Median full-time pay: £40,700

At a glance

Ashford Reading
Buying a home Expensive Expensive
Renting a home Very expensive Very expensive
Recorded crime About average Above average

Buying rates the typical price of all homes against median pay; renting rates a year of average rent against median pay; crime rates recorded crime per resident against the England and Wales average.

What the numbers say

Median full-time pay in Reading (£40,700) is 9% higher than in Ashford (£37,440), while a typical terraced house costs 21% more (£345,000 against £285,000). Set against local pay, Ashford is the easier of the two for a typical earner to buy in.

Buying a terraced house takes 7.6× annual pay in Ashford and 8.5× in Reading. Renting one takes 41% of pay in Ashford and 47% in Reading. Both are harder in Reading, and the gap is wider for renting.

Across all property types and measured against pay, Ashford is the 79th most expensive of 316 areas to buy in, and Reading is the 118th most expensive of 316 areas. For renting against pay, Ashford is the 85th most expensive of 316 areas and Reading is the 38th most expensive of 316 areas.

Someone on £40,000 in Ashford would need about £48,500 in Reading to be equally placed to buy a terraced house, and about £50,500 to be equally placed to rent one. Keeping the same pay after a move to Reading would leave you worse placed to buy. These figures compare housing costs only; they ignore other living costs and the pay you could earn in a new job.

Police recorded 65.3 crimes per 1,000 residents in Ashford and 98.0 in Reading, so recorded crime per resident is 50% higher in Reading. The biggest difference is in vehicle offences: 2.4 per 1,000 in Ashford against 5.4 in Reading.

Can a typical earner buy?

Terraced house Ashford Reading
Median full-time pay £37,440 £40,700
House price ÷ pay 7.6× 8.5×
Median pay as a share of income typically needed to buy 66% 59%
Rent a year as a share of median pay 41% 47%

Buying, by property type

Type Ashford Reading Difference
Detached £515,000 £615,000 +19% in Reading
Semi-detached £337,000 £428,500 +27% in Reading
Terraced £285,000 £345,000 +21% in Reading
Flat £175,000 £225,000 +29% in Reading

Renting, by property type

Type (average rent a month) Ashford Reading Difference
Detached £1,783 £2,172 +22% in Reading
Semi-detached £1,333 £1,755 +32% in Reading
Terraced £1,268 £1,607 +27% in Reading
Flat £1,045 £1,272 +22% in Reading

Crime

Police recorded 65.3 crimes per 1,000 residents in Ashford and 98.0 in Reading, so recorded crime per resident is 50% higher in Reading.

Police recorded crime per 1,000 residents Ashford Reading Difference
All recorded crime (excluding fraud) 65.3 98.0 +50% in Reading
Violence against the person 27.0 33.6 +25% in Reading
Sexual offences 2.9 4.0 +38% in Reading
Robbery 0.5 1.7 +239% in Reading
Residential burglary (per 1,000 households) 4.6 5.8 +26% in Reading
Vehicle offences 2.4 5.4 +128% in Reading
Theft from the person 0.3 1.5 +432% in Reading
Criminal damage and arson 7.0 6.5 -6% in Reading

Rates use resident population, so city centres and student areas show higher crime per resident than residents experience. Recorded crime also depends on reporting and police recording practice.

How prices have changed in each area

Average house price for all property types, indexed so that 2005 is 100. A line at 200 means prices have doubled.

Ashford: 191Reading: 193
House prices in Ashford and Reading since 2005, indexed so that 2005 is 100Prices indexed to 2005 = 100. Ashford now 191, Reading now 193.10012515017520020052010201520202025House prices in Ashford and Reading since 2005, indexed so that 2005 is 100Prices indexed to 2005 = 100. Ashford now 191, Reading now 193.10012515017520020102020
Show the figures
YearAshfordReading
2005100100
2006107104
2007117117
2008113112
2009102101
2010110109
2011106109
2012109112
2013114117
2014121130
2015131146
2016143168
2017152173
2018159170
2019161164
2020163162
2021173171
2022188187
2023190188
2024188188
2025189193
12 months to July 2026191193

In 2005 the average home cost £180,701 in Ashford and £183,968 in Reading. Now it is £345,734 and £354,278: Ashford is up 91% and Reading is up 93%.

Buying a home against local pay, over time

Average house price divided by median full-time pay. Higher means harder to afford.

Ashford: 9.1 years of payReading: 8.7 years of pay
Years of median pay needed to buy the average home in Ashford and ReadingAshford now 9.1, Reading now 8.7 years of pay.0×2.5×5×7.5×10×20052010201520202025Years of median pay needed to buy the average home in Ashford and ReadingAshford now 9.1, Reading now 8.7 years of pay.0×2.5×5×7.5×10×20052010201520202025
Show the figures
YearAshfordReading
20058.0 years of pay7.3 years of pay
20108.1 years of pay6.8 years of pay
20158.5 years of pay9.2 years of pay
20209.8 years of pay9.0 years of pay
20259.1 years of pay8.7 years of pay

In 2005 a home cost 8.0 years of pay in Ashford and 7.3 years in Reading. In 2025 it was 9.1 years and 8.7 years.

How rents have changed in each area

Average monthly rent for all property types, indexed so that 2015 is 100.

Ashford: 164Reading: 150
Rents in Ashford and Reading since 2015, indexed so that 2015 is 100Rents indexed to 2015 = 100. Ashford now 164, Reading now 150.100120140160180201620182020202220242026Rents in Ashford and Reading since 2015, indexed so that 2015 is 100Rents indexed to 2015 = 100. Ashford now 164, Reading now 150.100120140160180201520202025
Show the figures
YearAshfordReading
2015100100
2016103106
2017108108
2018112109
2019114112
2020116113
2021119112
2022127115
2023134122
2024146136
2025157148
August 2026164150

In 2015 the average rent was £762 a month in Ashford and £1,049 in Reading. Now it is £1,248 and £1,574: up 64% in Ashford and up 50% in Reading. Rents have risen faster in Ashford.

What your salary is worth in each area

Salary needed to afford the same kind of home (terraced), going by median prices and average rents.

Moving from Ashford to Reading

Earning in Ashford Equivalent to buy in Reading Equivalent to rent in Reading
£30,000 £36,500 £38,000
£40,000 £48,500 £50,500
£50,000 £60,500 £63,500
£60,000 £72,500 £76,000

Moving from Reading to Ashford

Earning in Reading Equivalent to buy in Ashford Equivalent to rent in Ashford
£30,000 £25,000 £23,500
£40,000 £33,000 £31,500
£50,000 £41,500 £39,500
£60,000 £49,500 £47,500
Prices are medians for each property type over the last 12 months of registered sales; types with fewer than 100 sales in either area are left out. Rents are ONS averages for the area. Pay is the median for full-time employees living in the area, before tax. Income needed is illustrative: it assumes a 10% deposit and a lender willing to lend 4.5 times income. Real lending depends on your circumstances. Salary equivalents compare housing costs only, not other living costs, tax or the pay you could earn in a new job.

All Ashford figures · All Reading figures