Brent vs Kingston upon Thames: buying or renting a home
A typical terraced house costs £85,000 (14%) more in Brent than in Kingston upon Thames. Measured against local pay, buying is harder in Brent: it takes 16.9× median annual pay, against 12.6× in Kingston upon Thames.
At a glance
| Brent | Kingston upon Thames | |
|---|---|---|
| Buying a home | Very expensive | Very expensive |
| Renting a home | Very expensive | Very expensive |
| Recorded crime | About 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 Kingston upon Thames (£46,871) is 17% higher than in Brent (£39,944), while a typical terraced house costs 13% less (£590,000 against £675,000). Set against local pay, Kingston upon Thames is the easier of the two for a typical earner to buy in.
Buying a terraced house takes 16.9× annual pay in Brent and 12.6× in Kingston upon Thames. Renting one takes 70% of pay in Brent and 55% in Kingston upon Thames. Both are harder in Brent, and the gap is wider for buying.
Across all property types and measured against pay, Brent is the 4th most expensive of 316 areas to buy in, and Kingston upon Thames is the 20th most expensive of 316 areas. For renting against pay, Brent is the 11th most expensive of 316 areas and Kingston upon Thames is the 39th most expensive of 316 areas.
Someone on £40,000 in Brent would need about £35,000 in Kingston upon Thames to be equally placed to buy a terraced house, and about £37,000 to be equally placed to rent one. Keeping the same pay after a move to Kingston upon Thames 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 89.3 crimes per 1,000 residents in Brent and 66.8 in Kingston upon Thames, so recorded crime per resident is 25% lower in Kingston upon Thames. The biggest difference is in residential burglary: 10.1 per 1,000 in Brent against 6.7 in Kingston upon Thames.
Can a typical earner buy?
| Terraced house | Brent | Kingston upon Thames |
|---|---|---|
| Median full-time pay | £39,944 | £46,871 |
| House price ÷ pay | 16.9× | 12.6× |
| Median pay as a share of income typically needed to buy | 30% | 40% |
| Rent a year as a share of median pay | 70% | 55% |
Buying, by property type
| Type | Brent | Kingston upon Thames | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Semi-detached | £660,000 | £760,000 | +15% in Kingston upon Thames |
| Terraced | £675,000 | £590,000 | -13% in Kingston upon Thames |
| Flat | £420,000 | £372,000 | -11% in Kingston upon Thames |
Renting, by property type
| Type (average rent a month) | Brent | Kingston upon Thames | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Semi-detached | £2,628 | £2,359 | -10% in Kingston upon Thames |
| Terraced | £2,332 | £2,144 | -8% in Kingston upon Thames |
| Flat | £1,801 | £1,604 | -11% in Kingston upon Thames |
Crime
Police recorded 89.3 crimes per 1,000 residents in Brent and 66.8 in Kingston upon Thames, so recorded crime per resident is 25% lower in Kingston upon Thames.
| Police recorded crime per 1,000 residents | Brent | Kingston upon Thames | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| All recorded crime (excluding fraud) | 89.3 | 66.8 | -25% in Kingston upon Thames |
| Violence against the person | 27.8 | 20.8 | -25% in Kingston upon Thames |
| Sexual offences | 2.5 | 2.4 | -5% in Kingston upon Thames |
| Robbery | 3.7 | 1.4 | -62% in Kingston upon Thames |
| Residential burglary (per 1,000 households) | 10.1 | 6.7 | -34% in Kingston upon Thames |
| Vehicle offences | 7.4 | 5.9 | -20% in Kingston upon Thames |
| Theft from the person | 5.2 | 2.2 | -58% in Kingston upon Thames |
| Criminal damage and arson | 5.5 | 4.7 | -14% in Kingston upon Thames |
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 | Brent | Kingston upon Thames |
|---|---|---|
| 2005 | 100 | 100 |
| 2006 | 105 | 105 |
| 2007 | 119 | 122 |
| 2008 | 121 | 124 |
| 2009 | 109 | 106 |
| 2010 | 120 | 121 |
| 2011 | 124 | 124 |
| 2012 | 130 | 129 |
| 2013 | 141 | 138 |
| 2014 | 163 | 162 |
| 2015 | 182 | 174 |
| 2016 | 203 | 192 |
| 2017 | 202 | 196 |
| 2018 | 204 | 198 |
| 2019 | 196 | 194 |
| 2020 | 202 | 195 |
| 2021 | 203 | 203 |
| 2022 | 216 | 220 |
| 2023 | 215 | 221 |
| 2024 | 217 | 216 |
| 2025 | 216 | 217 |
| 12 months to July 2026 | 212 | 218 |
In 2005 the average home cost £260,579 in Brent and £264,536 in Kingston upon Thames. Now it is £551,875 and £576,146: Brent is up 112% and Kingston upon Thames is up 118%. Prices have risen faster in Kingston upon Thames, 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.
Show the figures
| Year | Brent | Kingston upon Thames |
|---|---|---|
| 2005 | 10.6 years of pay | 9.2 years of pay |
| 2010 | 11.5 years of pay | 9.5 years of pay |
| 2015 | 16.0 years of pay | 12.5 years of pay |
| 2020 | 15.4 years of pay | 12.5 years of pay |
| 2025 | 14.1 years of pay | 12.3 years of pay |
In 2005 a home cost 10.6 years of pay in Brent and 9.2 years in Kingston upon Thames. In 2025 it was 14.1 years and 12.3 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 | Brent | Kingston upon Thames |
|---|---|---|
| 2015 | 100 | 100 |
| 2016 | 106 | 104 |
| 2017 | 108 | 105 |
| 2018 | 107 | 104 |
| 2019 | 107 | 104 |
| 2020 | 105 | 104 |
| 2021 | 106 | 107 |
| 2022 | 107 | 110 |
| 2023 | 113 | 116 |
| 2024 | 145 | 125 |
| 2025 | 144 | 134 |
| August 2026 | 145 | 135 |
In 2015 the average rent was £1,389 a month in Brent and £1,337 in Kingston upon Thames. Now it is £2,014 and £1,811: up 45% in Brent and up 35% in Kingston upon Thames. Rents have risen faster in Brent.
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 Brent to Kingston upon Thames
| Earning in Brent | Equivalent to buy in Kingston upon Thames | Equivalent to rent in Kingston upon Thames |
|---|---|---|
| £30,000 | £26,000 | £27,500 |
| £40,000 | £35,000 | £37,000 |
| £50,000 | £43,500 | £46,000 |
| £60,000 | £52,500 | £55,000 |
Moving from Kingston upon Thames to Brent
| Earning in Kingston upon Thames | Equivalent to buy in Brent | Equivalent to rent in Brent |
|---|---|---|
| £30,000 | £34,500 | £32,500 |
| £40,000 | £46,000 | £43,500 |
| £50,000 | £57,000 | £54,500 |
| £60,000 | £68,500 | £65,500 |