Pay vs Place

Ealing vs Leeds: buying or renting a home

A typical terraced house costs £447,500 (221%) more in Ealing than in Leeds. Measured against local pay, buying is harder in Ealing: it takes 15.9× median annual pay, against 5.5× in Leeds.

Ealing, terraced
£650,000
Income typically needed: £130,000
Median full-time pay: £40,889
Leeds, terraced
£202,500
Income typically needed: £40,500
Median full-time pay: £36,716

At a glance

Ealing Leeds
Buying a home Very expensive Fairly affordable
Renting a home Very 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 10% lower than in Ealing (£40,889), while a typical terraced house costs 69% less (£202,500 against £650,000). Set against local pay, Leeds is the easier of the two for a typical earner to buy in.

Buying a terraced house takes 15.9× annual pay in Ealing and 5.5× in Leeds. Renting one takes 74% of pay in Ealing and 38% in Leeds. Both are harder in Ealing, and the gap is wider for buying.

Across all property types and measured against pay, Ealing is the 7th most expensive of 316 areas to buy in, and Leeds is the 114th least expensive of 316 areas. For renting against pay, Ealing is the 7th most expensive of 316 areas and Leeds is the 106th most expensive of 316 areas.

Someone on £40,000 in Ealing would need about £12,500 in Leeds to be equally placed to buy a terraced house, and about £18,500 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 80.5 crimes per 1,000 residents in Ealing and 114.6 in Leeds, so recorded crime per resident is 42% higher in Leeds. The biggest difference is in violence against the person: 26.3 per 1,000 in Ealing against 44.9 in Leeds.

Can a typical earner buy?

Terraced house Ealing Leeds
Median full-time pay £40,889 £36,716
House price ÷ pay 15.9× 5.5×
Median pay as a share of income typically needed to buy 31% 91%
Rent a year as a share of median pay 74% 38%

Buying, by property type

Type Ealing Leeds Difference
Semi-detached £765,000 £262,000 -66% in Leeds
Terraced £650,000 £202,500 -69% in Leeds
Flat £395,000 £150,000 -62% in Leeds

Renting, by property type

Type (average rent a month) Ealing Leeds Difference
Semi-detached £2,752 £1,226 -55% in Leeds
Terraced £2,523 £1,157 -54% in Leeds
Flat £1,863 £905 -51% in Leeds

Crime

Police recorded 80.5 crimes per 1,000 residents in Ealing and 114.6 in Leeds, so recorded crime per resident is 42% higher in Leeds.

Police recorded crime per 1,000 residents Ealing Leeds Difference
All recorded crime (excluding fraud) 80.5 114.6 +42% in Leeds
Violence against the person 26.3 44.9 +71% in Leeds
Sexual offences 2.6 4.4 +65% in Leeds
Robbery 2.3 2.2 -4% in Leeds
Residential burglary (per 1,000 households) 9.2 13.0 +40% in Leeds
Vehicle offences 10.3 7.0 -32% in Leeds
Theft from the person 3.1 1.3 -58% in Leeds
Criminal damage and arson 5.4 8.5 +56% 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.

Ealing: 219Leeds: 181
House prices in Ealing and Leeds since 2005, indexed so that 2005 is 100Prices indexed to 2005 = 100. Ealing now 219, Leeds now 181.5010015020025020052010201520202025House prices in Ealing and Leeds since 2005, indexed so that 2005 is 100Prices indexed to 2005 = 100. Ealing now 219, Leeds now 181.5010015020025020102020
Show the figures
YearEalingLeeds
2005100100
2006106107
2007120114
2008121110
200910898
2010120103
2011123101
201213099
2013138100
2014163106
2015179111
2016195119
2017198125
2018196130
2019193134
2020196139
2021207151
2022217165
2023216168
2024217171
2025220177
12 months to July 2026219181

In 2005 the average home cost £261,986 in Ealing and £135,425 in Leeds. Now it is £573,273 and £244,464: Ealing is up 119% and Leeds is up 81%. Prices have risen faster in Ealing, 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.

Ealing: 14.1 years of payLeeds: 6.5 years of pay
Years of median pay needed to buy the average home in Ealing and LeedsEaling now 14.1, Leeds now 6.5 years of pay.0×5×10×15×20×20052010201520202025Years of median pay needed to buy the average home in Ealing and LeedsEaling now 14.1, Leeds now 6.5 years of pay.0×5×10×15×20×20052010201520202025
Show the figures
YearEalingLeeds
20059.9 years of pay6.1 years of pay
201011.0 years of pay5.7 years of pay
201516.2 years of pay5.7 years of pay
202014.1 years of pay6.2 years of pay
202514.1 years of pay6.5 years of pay

In 2005 a home cost 9.9 years of pay in Ealing and 6.1 years in Leeds. In 2025 it was 14.1 years and 6.5 years.

Affordability has worsened more in Ealing over that time.

How rents have changed in each area

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

Ealing: 149Leeds: 151
Rents in Ealing and Leeds since 2015, indexed so that 2015 is 100Rents indexed to 2015 = 100. Ealing now 149, Leeds now 151.80100120140160201620182020202220242026Rents in Ealing and Leeds since 2015, indexed so that 2015 is 100Rents indexed to 2015 = 100. Ealing now 149, Leeds now 151.80100120140160201520202025
Show the figures
YearEalingLeeds
2015100100
201610498
2017105102
2018104104
2019104107
2020109112
2021111114
2022112125
2023118136
2024132145
2025144146
August 2026149151

In 2015 the average rent was £1,413 a month in Ealing and £758 in Leeds. Now it is £2,109 and £1,145: up 49% in Ealing 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 Ealing to Leeds

Earning in Ealing Equivalent to buy in Leeds Equivalent to rent in Leeds
£30,000 £9,500 £14,000
£40,000 £12,500 £18,500
£50,000 £15,500 £23,000
£60,000 £18,500 £27,500

Moving from Leeds to Ealing

Earning in Leeds Equivalent to buy in Ealing Equivalent to rent in Ealing
£30,000 £96,500 £65,500
£40,000 £128,500 £87,000
£50,000 £160,500 £109,000
£60,000 £192,500 £131,000
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 Ealing figures · All Leeds figures