Pay vs Place

Bath and North East Somerset vs Stroud: buying or renting a home

A typical terraced house costs £87,500 (32%) more in Bath and North East Somerset than in Stroud. Measured against local pay, buying is harder in Bath and North East Somerset: it takes 8.8× median annual pay, against 7.0× in Stroud.

Bath and North East Somerset, terraced
£357,500
Income typically needed: £71,500
Median full-time pay: £40,448
Stroud, terraced
£270,000
Income typically needed: £54,000
Median full-time pay: £38,608

At a glance

Bath and North East Somerset Stroud
Buying a home Expensive Expensive
Renting a home Very expensive Fairly affordable
Recorded crime About average Low

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 Stroud (£38,608) is 5% lower than in Bath and North East Somerset (£40,448), while a typical terraced house costs 24% less (£270,000 against £357,500). Set against local pay, Stroud is the easier of the two for a typical earner to buy in.

Buying a terraced house takes 8.8× annual pay in Bath and North East Somerset and 7.0× in Stroud. Renting one takes 60% of pay in Bath and North East Somerset and 32% in Stroud. Both are harder in Bath and North East Somerset, and the gap is wider for renting.

Across all property types and measured against pay, Bath and North East Somerset is the 67th most expensive of 316 areas to buy in, and Stroud is the 101st most expensive of 316 areas. For renting against pay, Bath and North East Somerset is the 16th most expensive of 316 areas and Stroud is around the middle of 316 areas (168th most expensive).

Someone on £40,000 in Bath and North East Somerset would need about £30,000 in Stroud to be equally placed to buy a terraced house, and about £20,000 to be equally placed to rent one. Keeping the same pay after a move to Stroud would leave you better 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 79.1 crimes per 1,000 residents in Bath and North East Somerset and 49.3 in Stroud, so recorded crime per resident is 38% lower in Stroud. The biggest difference is in residential burglary: 6.0 per 1,000 in Bath and North East Somerset against 4.0 in Stroud.

Can a typical earner buy?

Terraced house Bath and North East Somerset Stroud
Median full-time pay £40,448 £38,608
House price ÷ pay 8.8× 7.0×
Median pay as a share of income typically needed to buy 57% 71%
Rent a year as a share of median pay 60% 32%

Buying, by property type

Type Bath and North East Somerset Stroud Difference
Detached £570,000 £500,000 -12% in Stroud
Semi-detached £400,000 £325,000 -19% in Stroud
Terraced £357,500 £270,000 -24% in Stroud
Flat £280,500 £160,000 -43% in Stroud

Renting, by property type

Type (average rent a month) Bath and North East Somerset Stroud Difference
Detached £2,399 £1,396 -42% in Stroud
Semi-detached £2,003 £1,113 -44% in Stroud
Terraced £2,021 £1,023 -49% in Stroud
Flat £1,392 £835 -40% in Stroud

Crime

Police recorded 79.1 crimes per 1,000 residents in Bath and North East Somerset and 49.3 in Stroud, so recorded crime per resident is 38% lower in Stroud.

Police recorded crime per 1,000 residents Bath and North East Somerset Stroud Difference
All recorded crime (excluding fraud) 79.1 49.3 -38% in Stroud
Violence against the person 31.5 21.3 -32% in Stroud
Sexual offences 3.1 2.5 -19% in Stroud
Robbery 1.2 0.4 -69% in Stroud
Residential burglary (per 1,000 households) 6.0 4.0 -34% in Stroud
Vehicle offences 3.5 2.5 -29% in Stroud
Theft from the person 0.4 0.1 -74% in Stroud
Criminal damage and arson 6.1 4.4 -28% in Stroud

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.

Bath and North East Somerset: 204Stroud: 177
House prices in Bath and North East Somerset and Stroud since 2005, indexed so that 2005 is 100Prices indexed to 2005 = 100. Bath and North East Somerset now 204, Stroud now 177.5010015020025020052010201520202025House prices in Bath and North East Somerset and Stroud since 2005, indexed so that 2005 is 100Prices indexed to 2005 = 100. Bath and North East Somerset now 204, Stroud now 177.5010015020025020102020
Show the figures
YearBath and North East SomersetStroud
2005100100
2006104104
2007115114
2008111109
200910196
2010112104
2011112103
2012115104
2013119105
2014126112
2015135119
2016148127
2017155137
2018162140
2019159142
2020165148
2021178150
2022200168
2023201171
2024203171
2025203174
12 months to July 2026204177

In 2005 the average home cost £202,782 in Bath and North East Somerset and £196,733 in Stroud. Now it is £412,867 and £348,740: Bath and North East Somerset is up 104% and Stroud is up 77%. Prices have risen faster in Bath and North East Somerset, so the gap between the two has widened.

Buying a home against local pay, over time

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

Bath and North East Somerset: 10.2 years of payStroud: 8.9 years of pay
Years of median pay needed to buy the average home in Bath and North East Somerset and StroudBath and North East Somerset now 10.2, Stroud now 8.9 years of pay.0×5×10×15×20052010201520202025Years of median pay needed to buy the average home in Bath and North East Somerset and StroudBath and North East Somerset now 10.2, Stroud now 8.9 years of pay.0×5×10×15×20052010201520202025
Show the figures
YearBath and North East SomersetStroud
20058.8 years of pay8.4 years of pay
20108.6 years of pay7.9 years of pay
20159.7 years of pay8.6 years of pay
202010.8 years of pay9.2 years of pay
202510.2 years of pay8.9 years of pay

In 2005 a home cost 8.8 years of pay in Bath and North East Somerset and 8.4 years in Stroud. In 2025 it was 10.2 years and 8.9 years.

Affordability has worsened more in Bath and North East Somerset over that time.

How rents have changed in each area

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

Bath and North East Somerset: 173Stroud: 155
Rents in Bath and North East Somerset and Stroud since 2015, indexed so that 2015 is 100Rents indexed to 2015 = 100. Bath and North East Somerset now 173, Stroud now 155.100120140160180201620182020202220242026Rents in Bath and North East Somerset and Stroud since 2015, indexed so that 2015 is 100Rents indexed to 2015 = 100. Bath and North East Somerset now 173, Stroud now 155.100120140160180201520202025
Show the figures
YearBath and North East SomersetStroud
2015100100
2016105103
2017114105
2018117108
2019118110
2020119111
2021120115
2022129119
2023136130
2024145139
2025160146
August 2026173155

In 2015 the average rent was £1,091 a month in Bath and North East Somerset and £671 in Stroud. Now it is £1,885 and £1,041: up 73% in Bath and North East Somerset and up 55% in Stroud. Rents have risen faster in Bath and North East Somerset.

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 Bath and North East Somerset to Stroud

Earning in Bath and North East Somerset Equivalent to buy in Stroud Equivalent to rent in Stroud
£30,000 £22,500 £15,000
£40,000 £30,000 £20,000
£50,000 £38,000 £25,500
£60,000 £45,500 £30,500

Moving from Stroud to Bath and North East Somerset

Earning in Stroud Equivalent to buy in Bath and North East Somerset Equivalent to rent in Bath and North East Somerset
£30,000 £39,500 £59,500
£40,000 £53,000 £79,000
£50,000 £66,000 £99,000
£60,000 £79,500 £118,500
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 Bath and North East Somerset figures · All Stroud figures