Birmingham vs Malvern Hills: buying or renting a home
A typical terraced house costs £18,000 (8%) more in Malvern Hills than in Birmingham. Measured against local pay, buying is harder in Malvern Hills: it takes 6.7× median annual pay, against 6.1× in Birmingham.
At a glance
| Birmingham | Malvern Hills | |
|---|---|---|
| Buying a home | Fairly affordable | Expensive |
| Renting a home | Expensive | Fairly affordable |
| Recorded crime | Above average | About 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 Malvern Hills (£35,429) is 2% lower than in Birmingham (£35,989), while a typical terraced house costs 8% more (£238,000 against £220,000). Set against local pay, Birmingham is the easier of the two for a typical earner to buy in.
Buying a terraced house takes 6.1× annual pay in Birmingham and 6.7× in Malvern Hills. Renting one takes 37% of pay in Birmingham and 31% in Malvern Hills. The two measures point different ways: buying is harder in Malvern Hills, but renting takes a bigger share of pay in Birmingham.
Across all property types and measured against pay, Birmingham is the 108th least expensive of 316 areas to buy in, and Malvern Hills is the 74th most expensive of 316 areas. For renting against pay, Birmingham is the 112th most expensive of 316 areas and Malvern Hills is around the middle of 316 areas (170th most expensive).
Someone on £40,000 in Birmingham would need about £43,500 in Malvern Hills to be equally placed to buy a terraced house, and about £33,500 to be equally placed to rent one. Keeping the same pay after a move to Malvern Hills 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 114.2 crimes per 1,000 residents in Birmingham and 63.6 in Malvern Hills, so recorded crime per resident is 44% lower in Malvern Hills. The biggest difference is in vehicle offences: 10.2 per 1,000 in Birmingham against 2.8 in Malvern Hills.
Can a typical earner buy?
| Terraced house | Birmingham | Malvern Hills |
|---|---|---|
| Median full-time pay | £35,989 | £35,429 |
| House price ÷ pay | 6.1× | 6.7× |
| Median pay as a share of income typically needed to buy | 82% | 74% |
| Rent a year as a share of median pay | 37% | 31% |
Buying, by property type
| Type | Birmingham | Malvern Hills | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Detached | £452,500 | £460,000 | +2% in Malvern Hills |
| Semi-detached | £265,000 | £295,000 | +11% in Malvern Hills |
| Terraced | £220,000 | £238,000 | +8% in Malvern Hills |
Renting, by property type
| Type (average rent a month) | Birmingham | Malvern Hills | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Detached | £1,434 | £1,231 | -14% in Malvern Hills |
| Semi-detached | £1,151 | £1,014 | -12% in Malvern Hills |
| Terraced | £1,095 | £915 | -16% in Malvern Hills |
Crime
Police recorded 114.2 crimes per 1,000 residents in Birmingham and 63.6 in Malvern Hills, so recorded crime per resident is 44% lower in Malvern Hills.
| Police recorded crime per 1,000 residents | Birmingham | Malvern Hills | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| All recorded crime (excluding fraud) | 114.2 | 63.6 | -44% in Malvern Hills |
| Violence against the person | 46.1 | 25.1 | -46% in Malvern Hills |
| Sexual offences | 4.8 | 2.8 | -42% in Malvern Hills |
| Robbery | 3.1 | 0.8 | -75% in Malvern Hills |
| Residential burglary (per 1,000 households) | 11.7 | 6.0 | -49% in Malvern Hills |
| Vehicle offences | 10.2 | 2.8 | -73% in Malvern Hills |
| Theft from the person | 1.3 | 0.2 | -82% in Malvern Hills |
| Criminal damage and arson | 9.1 | 6.0 | -34% in Malvern Hills |
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.
Show the figures
| Year | Birmingham | Malvern Hills |
|---|---|---|
| 2005 | 100 | 100 |
| 2006 | 104 | 104 |
| 2007 | 109 | 113 |
| 2008 | 105 | 106 |
| 2009 | 95 | 98 |
| 2010 | 100 | 103 |
| 2011 | 97 | 103 |
| 2012 | 98 | 101 |
| 2013 | 100 | 102 |
| 2014 | 106 | 108 |
| 2015 | 111 | 113 |
| 2016 | 120 | 119 |
| 2017 | 129 | 124 |
| 2018 | 136 | 129 |
| 2019 | 140 | 132 |
| 2020 | 142 | 133 |
| 2021 | 157 | 144 |
| 2022 | 172 | 156 |
| 2023 | 174 | 159 |
| 2024 | 174 | 158 |
| 2025 | 178 | 159 |
| 12 months to July 2026 | 179 | 164 |
In 2005 the average home cost £130,237 in Birmingham and £208,484 in Malvern Hills. Now it is £232,548 and £342,672: Birmingham is up 79% and Malvern Hills is up 64%. Prices have risen faster in Birmingham, so the gap between the two has narrowed.
Buying a home against local pay, over time
Average house price divided by median full-time pay. Higher means harder to afford.
Show the figures
| Year | Birmingham | Malvern Hills |
|---|---|---|
| 2005 | 6.1 years of pay | 8.6 years of pay |
| 2010 | 5.5 years of pay | – |
| 2015 | 5.8 years of pay | 9.1 years of pay |
| 2020 | 6.3 years of pay | 9.4 years of pay |
| 2025 | 6.5 years of pay | 9.3 years of pay |
In 2005 a home cost 6.1 years of pay in Birmingham and 8.6 years in Malvern Hills. In 2025 it was 6.5 years and 9.3 years.
How rents have changed in each area
Average monthly rent for all property types, indexed so that 2015 is 100.
Show the figures
| Year | Birmingham | Malvern Hills |
|---|---|---|
| 2015 | 100 | 100 |
| 2016 | 105 | 102 |
| 2017 | 108 | 104 |
| 2018 | 111 | 105 |
| 2019 | 113 | 107 |
| 2020 | 116 | 109 |
| 2021 | 118 | 112 |
| 2022 | 122 | 115 |
| 2023 | 132 | 125 |
| 2024 | 147 | 134 |
| 2025 | 156 | 139 |
| August 2026 | 161 | 149 |
In 2015 the average rent was £682 a month in Birmingham and £636 in Malvern Hills. Now it is £1,099 and £946: up 61% in Birmingham and up 49% in Malvern Hills. Rents have risen faster in Birmingham.
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 Birmingham to Malvern Hills
| Earning in Birmingham | Equivalent to buy in Malvern Hills | Equivalent to rent in Malvern Hills |
|---|---|---|
| £30,000 | £32,500 | £25,000 |
| £40,000 | £43,500 | £33,500 |
| £50,000 | £54,000 | £42,000 |
| £60,000 | £65,000 | £50,000 |
Moving from Malvern Hills to Birmingham
| Earning in Malvern Hills | Equivalent to buy in Birmingham | Equivalent to rent in Birmingham |
|---|---|---|
| £30,000 | £27,500 | £36,000 |
| £40,000 | £37,000 | £48,000 |
| £50,000 | £46,000 | £60,000 |
| £60,000 | £55,500 | £72,000 |