Halton vs Rossendale: buying or renting a home
A typical terraced house costs £10,000 (7%) more in Rossendale than in Halton. Measured against local pay, buying is about equally hard in both.
At a glance
| Halton | Rossendale | |
|---|---|---|
| Buying a home | Fairly affordable | Fairly affordable |
| Renting a home | Fairly affordable | Fairly affordable |
| 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 Rossendale (£35,273) is the same than in Halton (£35,187), while a typical terraced house costs 7% more (£155,000 against £145,000).
Buying a terraced house takes 4.1× annual pay in Halton and 4.4× in Rossendale. Renting one takes 26% of pay in Halton and 27% in Rossendale. Both are harder in Rossendale, and the gap is wider for buying.
Across all property types and measured against pay, Halton is the 41st least expensive of 316 areas to buy in, and Rossendale is the 34th least expensive of 316 areas. For renting against pay, Halton is the 43rd least expensive of 316 areas and Rossendale is the 81st least expensive of 316 areas.
Someone on £40,000 in Halton would need about £43,000 in Rossendale to be equally placed to buy a terraced house, and about £42,000 to be equally placed to rent one. Keeping the same pay after a move to Rossendale 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 84.7 crimes per 1,000 residents in Halton and 66.2 in Rossendale, so recorded crime per resident is 22% lower in Rossendale. The biggest difference is in sexual offences: 4.4 per 1,000 in Halton against 3.0 in Rossendale.
Can a typical earner buy?
| Terraced house | Halton | Rossendale |
|---|---|---|
| Median full-time pay | £35,187 | £35,273 |
| House price ÷ pay | 4.1× | 4.4× |
| Median pay as a share of income typically needed to buy | 121% | 114% |
| Rent a year as a share of median pay | 26% | 27% |
Buying, by property type
| Type | Halton | Rossendale | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Detached | £346,000 | £365,000 | +5% in Rossendale |
| Semi-detached | £210,000 | £225,000 | +7% in Rossendale |
| Terraced | £145,000 | £155,000 | +7% in Rossendale |
Renting, by property type
| Type (average rent a month) | Halton | Rossendale | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Detached | £1,066 | £1,163 | +9% in Rossendale |
| Semi-detached | £813 | £910 | +12% in Rossendale |
| Terraced | £751 | £791 | +5% in Rossendale |
Crime
Police recorded 84.7 crimes per 1,000 residents in Halton and 66.2 in Rossendale, so recorded crime per resident is 22% lower in Rossendale.
| Police recorded crime per 1,000 residents | Halton | Rossendale | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| All recorded crime (excluding fraud) | 84.7 | 66.2 | -22% in Rossendale |
| Violence against the person | 38.4 | 28.9 | -25% in Rossendale |
| Sexual offences | 4.4 | 3.0 | -30% in Rossendale |
| Robbery | 0.8 | 0.4 | -41% in Rossendale |
| Residential burglary (per 1,000 households) | 4.5 | 6.1 | +36% in Rossendale |
| Vehicle offences | 2.7 | 3.6 | +34% in Rossendale |
| Theft from the person | 0.5 | 0.1 | -70% in Rossendale |
| Criminal damage and arson | 6.6 | 7.6 | +16% in Rossendale |
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 | Halton | Rossendale |
|---|---|---|
| 2005 | 100 | 100 |
| 2006 | 107 | 104 |
| 2007 | 114 | 112 |
| 2008 | 111 | 110 |
| 2009 | 98 | 99 |
| 2010 | 100 | 102 |
| 2011 | 97 | 98 |
| 2012 | 95 | 96 |
| 2013 | 96 | 94 |
| 2014 | 100 | 96 |
| 2015 | 103 | 100 |
| 2016 | 109 | 104 |
| 2017 | 113 | 110 |
| 2018 | 115 | 116 |
| 2019 | 120 | 121 |
| 2020 | 123 | 128 |
| 2021 | 139 | 149 |
| 2022 | 154 | 162 |
| 2023 | 156 | 167 |
| 2024 | 161 | 170 |
| 2025 | 173 | 178 |
| 12 months to July 2026 | 180 | 180 |
In 2005 the average home cost £108,487 in Halton and £107,420 in Rossendale. Now it is £194,907 and £193,770: Halton is up 80% and Rossendale is up 80%.
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 | Halton | Rossendale |
|---|---|---|
| 2005 | 5.4 years of pay | 5.3 years of pay |
| 2010 | 4.8 years of pay | 5.0 years of pay |
| 2015 | 4.5 years of pay | 4.4 years of pay |
| 2020 | 4.4 years of pay | 5.0 years of pay |
| 2025 | 5.3 years of pay | 5.4 years of pay |
In 2005 a home cost 5.4 years of pay in Halton and 5.3 years in Rossendale. In 2025 it was 5.3 years and 5.4 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 | Halton | Rossendale |
|---|---|---|
| 2015 | 100 | 100 |
| 2016 | 101 | 101 |
| 2017 | 101 | 103 |
| 2018 | 102 | 107 |
| 2019 | 103 | 109 |
| 2020 | 104 | 112 |
| 2021 | 106 | 116 |
| 2022 | 110 | 121 |
| 2023 | 117 | 132 |
| 2024 | 126 | 148 |
| 2025 | 132 | 165 |
| August 2026 | 142 | 175 |
In 2015 the average rent was £529 a month in Halton and £464 in Rossendale. Now it is £749 and £811: up 42% in Halton and up 75% in Rossendale. Rents have risen faster in Rossendale.
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 Halton to Rossendale
| Earning in Halton | Equivalent to buy in Rossendale | Equivalent to rent in Rossendale |
|---|---|---|
| £30,000 | £32,000 | £31,500 |
| £40,000 | £43,000 | £42,000 |
| £50,000 | £53,500 | £52,500 |
| £60,000 | £64,000 | £63,000 |
Moving from Rossendale to Halton
| Earning in Rossendale | Equivalent to buy in Halton | Equivalent to rent in Halton |
|---|---|---|
| £30,000 | £28,000 | £28,500 |
| £40,000 | £37,500 | £38,000 |
| £50,000 | £47,000 | £47,500 |
| £60,000 | £56,000 | £57,000 |