Pay vs Place

Cheltenham vs Leeds: buying or renting a home

A typical terraced house costs £103,500 (51%) more in Cheltenham than in Leeds. Measured against local pay, buying is harder in Cheltenham: it takes 7.4× median annual pay, against 5.5× in Leeds.

Cheltenham, terraced
£306,000
Income typically needed: £61,000
Median full-time pay: £41,399
Leeds, terraced
£202,500
Income typically needed: £40,500
Median full-time pay: £36,716

At a glance

Cheltenham Leeds
Buying a home Fairly affordable Fairly affordable
Renting a home Expensive 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 Leeds (£36,716) is 11% lower than in Cheltenham (£41,399), while a typical terraced house costs 34% less (£202,500 against £306,000). Set against local pay, Leeds is the easier of the two for a typical earner to buy in.

Buying a terraced house takes 7.4× annual pay in Cheltenham and 5.5× in Leeds. Renting one takes 35% of pay in Cheltenham and 38% in Leeds. The two measures point different ways: buying is harder in Cheltenham, but renting takes a bigger share of pay in Leeds.

Across all property types and measured against pay, Cheltenham is around the middle of 316 areas (143rd most expensive) to buy in, and Leeds is the 114th least expensive of 316 areas. For renting against pay, Cheltenham is the 114th most expensive of 316 areas and Leeds is the 106th most expensive of 316 areas.

Someone on £40,000 in Cheltenham would need about £26,500 in Leeds to be equally placed to buy a terraced house, and about £38,000 to be equally placed to rent one. Keeping the same pay after a move to Leeds 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 79.7 crimes per 1,000 residents in Cheltenham and 114.6 in Leeds, so recorded crime per resident is 44% higher in Leeds. The biggest difference is in residential burglary: 7.4 per 1,000 in Cheltenham against 13.0 in Leeds.

Can a typical earner buy?

Terraced house Cheltenham Leeds
Median full-time pay £41,399 £36,716
House price ÷ pay 7.4× 5.5×
Median pay as a share of income typically needed to buy 68% 91%
Rent a year as a share of median pay 35% 38%

Buying, by property type

Type Cheltenham Leeds Difference
Detached £630,000 £430,000 -32% in Leeds
Semi-detached £375,000 £262,000 -30% in Leeds
Terraced £306,000 £202,500 -34% in Leeds
Flat £204,500 £150,000 -27% in Leeds

Renting, by property type

Type (average rent a month) Cheltenham Leeds Difference
Detached £1,753 £1,507 -14% in Leeds
Semi-detached £1,337 £1,226 -8% in Leeds
Terraced £1,216 £1,157 -5% in Leeds
Flat £985 £905 -8% in Leeds

Crime

Police recorded 79.7 crimes per 1,000 residents in Cheltenham and 114.6 in Leeds, so recorded crime per resident is 44% higher in Leeds.

Police recorded crime per 1,000 residents Cheltenham Leeds Difference
All recorded crime (excluding fraud) 79.7 114.6 +44% in Leeds
Violence against the person 27.2 44.9 +65% in Leeds
Sexual offences 3.1 4.4 +41% in Leeds
Robbery 1.1 2.2 +93% in Leeds
Residential burglary (per 1,000 households) 7.4 13.0 +75% in Leeds
Vehicle offences 6.6 7.0 +6% in Leeds
Theft from the person 0.7 1.3 +93% in Leeds
Criminal damage and arson 6.4 8.5 +32% in Leeds

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.

Cheltenham: 189Leeds: 181
House prices in Cheltenham and Leeds since 2005, indexed so that 2005 is 100Prices indexed to 2005 = 100. Cheltenham now 189, Leeds now 181.7510012515017520020052010201520202025House prices in Cheltenham and Leeds since 2005, indexed so that 2005 is 100Prices indexed to 2005 = 100. Cheltenham now 189, Leeds now 181.7510012515017520020102020
Show the figures
YearCheltenhamLeeds
2005100100
2006107107
2007114114
2008108110
20099798
2010109103
2011106101
201211199
2013112100
2014120106
2015127111
2016136119
2017146125
2018151130
2019151134
2020157139
2021166151
2022184165
2023186168
2024189171
2025187177
12 months to July 2026189181

In 2005 the average home cost £173,279 in Cheltenham and £135,425 in Leeds. Now it is £327,870 and £244,464: Cheltenham is up 89% and Leeds is up 81%. Prices have risen faster in Cheltenham, 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.

Cheltenham: 7.8 years of payLeeds: 6.5 years of pay
Years of median pay needed to buy the average home in Cheltenham and LeedsCheltenham now 7.8, Leeds now 6.5 years of pay.0×2.5×5×7.5×10×20052010201520202025Years of median pay needed to buy the average home in Cheltenham and LeedsCheltenham now 7.8, Leeds now 6.5 years of pay.0×2.5×5×7.5×10×20052010201520202025
Show the figures
YearCheltenhamLeeds
20057.0 years of pay6.1 years of pay
20107.0 years of pay5.7 years of pay
20157.4 years of pay5.7 years of pay
20208.1 years of pay6.2 years of pay
20257.8 years of pay6.5 years of pay

In 2005 a home cost 7.0 years of pay in Cheltenham and 6.1 years in Leeds. In 2025 it was 7.8 years and 6.5 years.

How rents have changed in each area

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

Cheltenham: 153Leeds: 151
Rents in Cheltenham and Leeds since 2015, indexed so that 2015 is 100Rents indexed to 2015 = 100. Cheltenham now 153, Leeds now 151.80100120140160201620182020202220242026Rents in Cheltenham and Leeds since 2015, indexed so that 2015 is 100Rents indexed to 2015 = 100. Cheltenham now 153, Leeds now 151.80100120140160201520202025
Show the figures
YearCheltenhamLeeds
2015100100
201610398
2017106102
2018107104
2019108107
2020110112
2021113114
2022119125
2023127136
2024138145
2025146146
August 2026153151

In 2015 the average rent was £825 a month in Cheltenham and £758 in Leeds. Now it is £1,261 and £1,145: up 53% in Cheltenham and up 51% in Leeds.

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 Cheltenham to Leeds

Earning in Cheltenham Equivalent to buy in Leeds Equivalent to rent in Leeds
£30,000 £20,000 £28,500
£40,000 £26,500 £38,000
£50,000 £33,000 £47,500
£60,000 £39,500 £57,000

Moving from Leeds to Cheltenham

Earning in Leeds Equivalent to buy in Cheltenham Equivalent to rent in Cheltenham
£30,000 £45,500 £31,500
£40,000 £60,500 £42,000
£50,000 £75,500 £52,500
£60,000 £90,500 £63,000
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 Cheltenham figures · All Leeds figures