Pay vs Place

Dacorum vs Manchester: buying or renting a home

A typical terraced house costs £159,000 (62%) more in Dacorum than in Manchester. Measured against local pay, buying is harder in Dacorum: it takes 9.3× median annual pay, against 7.1× in Manchester.

Dacorum, terraced
£415,000
Income typically needed: £83,000
Median full-time pay: £44,485
Manchester, terraced
£256,000
Income typically needed: £51,000
Median full-time pay: £36,278

At a glance

Dacorum Manchester
Buying a home Expensive Fairly affordable
Renting a home Very expensive Very expensive
Recorded crime About average High

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 Manchester (£36,278) is 18% lower than in Dacorum (£44,485), while a typical terraced house costs 38% less (£256,000 against £415,000). Set against local pay, Manchester is the easier of the two for a typical earner to buy in.

Buying a terraced house takes 9.3× annual pay in Dacorum and 7.1× in Manchester. Renting one takes 41% of pay in Dacorum and 46% in Manchester. The two measures point different ways: buying is harder in Dacorum, but renting takes a bigger share of pay in Manchester.

Across all property types and measured against pay, Dacorum is the 50th most expensive of 316 areas to buy in, and Manchester is around the middle of 316 areas (188th most expensive). For renting against pay, Dacorum is the 60th most expensive of 316 areas and Manchester is the 46th most expensive of 316 areas.

Someone on £40,000 in Dacorum would need about £24,500 in Manchester 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 Manchester 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 65.9 crimes per 1,000 residents in Dacorum and 142.7 in Manchester, so recorded crime per resident in Manchester is 2.2 times the rate in Dacorum. The biggest difference is in sexual offences: 2.7 per 1,000 in Dacorum against 5.6 in Manchester.

Can a typical earner buy?

Terraced house Dacorum Manchester
Median full-time pay £44,485 £36,278
House price ÷ pay 9.3× 7.1×
Median pay as a share of income typically needed to buy 54% 71%
Rent a year as a share of median pay 41% 46%

Buying, by property type

Type Dacorum Manchester Difference
Detached £795,000 £400,000 -50% in Manchester
Semi-detached £540,000 £310,000 -43% in Manchester
Terraced £415,000 £256,000 -38% in Manchester
Flat £255,000 £210,000 -18% in Manchester

Renting, by property type

Type (average rent a month) Dacorum Manchester Difference
Detached £2,195 £1,878 -14% in Manchester
Semi-detached £1,737 £1,496 -14% in Manchester
Terraced £1,527 £1,405 -8% in Manchester
Flat £1,251 £1,147 -8% in Manchester

Crime

Police recorded 65.9 crimes per 1,000 residents in Dacorum and 142.7 in Manchester, so recorded crime per resident in Manchester is 2.2 times the rate in Dacorum.

Police recorded crime per 1,000 residents Dacorum Manchester Difference
All recorded crime (excluding fraud) 65.9 142.7 +116% in Manchester
Violence against the person 25.7 51.9 +102% in Manchester
Sexual offences 2.7 5.6 +112% in Manchester
Robbery 0.8 2.7 +244% in Manchester
Residential burglary (per 1,000 households) 6.4 9.3 +44% in Manchester
Vehicle offences 4.8 7.9 +67% in Manchester
Theft from the person 0.6 3.9 +579% in Manchester
Criminal damage and arson 5.7 10.0 +77% in Manchester

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.

Dacorum: 213Manchester: 251
House prices in Dacorum and Manchester since 2005, indexed so that 2005 is 100Prices indexed to 2005 = 100. Dacorum now 213, Manchester now 251.10015020025030020052010201520202025House prices in Dacorum and Manchester since 2005, indexed so that 2005 is 100Prices indexed to 2005 = 100. Dacorum now 213, Manchester now 251.10015020025030020102020
Show the figures
YearDacorumManchester
2005100100
2006105117
2007116129
2008116125
2009104112
2010115115
2011115114
2012118115
2013121115
2014135125
2015151133
2016172145
2017180158
2018180167
2019178173
2020181178
2021192209
2022203231
2023205233
2024204241
2025212247
12 months to July 2026213251

In 2005 the average home cost £214,986 in Dacorum and £100,202 in Manchester. Now it is £457,149 and £251,205: Dacorum is up 113% and Manchester is up 151%. Prices have risen faster in Manchester, 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.

Dacorum: 10.2 years of payManchester: 6.8 years of pay
Years of median pay needed to buy the average home in Dacorum and ManchesterDacorum now 10.2, Manchester now 6.8 years of pay.0×5×10×15×20052010201520202025Years of median pay needed to buy the average home in Dacorum and ManchesterDacorum now 10.2, Manchester now 6.8 years of pay.0×5×10×15×20052010201520202025
Show the figures
YearDacorumManchester
20057.9 years of pay4.8 years of pay
20108.4 years of pay5.0 years of pay
201510.2 years of pay5.4 years of pay
202011.1 years of pay6.3 years of pay
202510.2 years of pay6.8 years of pay

In 2005 a home cost 7.9 years of pay in Dacorum and 4.8 years in Manchester. In 2025 it was 10.2 years and 6.8 years.

How rents have changed in each area

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

Dacorum: 149Manchester: 174
Rents in Dacorum and Manchester since 2015, indexed so that 2015 is 100Rents indexed to 2015 = 100. Dacorum now 149, Manchester now 174.100120140160180201620182020202220242026Rents in Dacorum and Manchester since 2015, indexed so that 2015 is 100Rents indexed to 2015 = 100. Dacorum now 149, Manchester now 174.100120140160180201520202025
Show the figures
YearDacorumManchester
2015100100
2016105101
2017110106
2018113112
2019113114
2020114117
2021117120
2022122127
2023129139
2024136156
2025146167
August 2026149174

In 2015 the average rent was £1,068 a month in Dacorum and £790 in Manchester. Now it is £1,594 and £1,373: up 49% in Dacorum and up 74% in Manchester. Rents have risen faster in Manchester.

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 Dacorum to Manchester

Earning in Dacorum Equivalent to buy in Manchester Equivalent to rent in Manchester
£30,000 £18,500 £27,500
£40,000 £24,500 £37,000
£50,000 £31,000 £46,000
£60,000 £37,000 £55,000

Moving from Manchester to Dacorum

Earning in Manchester Equivalent to buy in Dacorum Equivalent to rent in Dacorum
£30,000 £48,500 £32,500
£40,000 £65,000 £43,500
£50,000 £81,000 £54,500
£60,000 £97,500 £65,000
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 Dacorum figures · All Manchester figures