Kensington and Chelsea vs Newcastle upon Tyne: buying or renting a home

A typical terraced house costs £2,840,000 (1535%) more in Kensington and Chelsea than in Newcastle upon Tyne. Measured against local pay, buying is harder in Kensington and Chelsea: it takes 57.5× median annual pay, against 5.2× in Newcastle upon Tyne.

At a glance

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 Newcastle upon Tyne (£35,446) is 33% lower than in Kensington and Chelsea (£52,576), while a typical terraced house costs 94% less (£185,000 against £3,025,000). Set against local pay, Newcastle upon Tyne is the easier of the two for a typical earner to buy in.

Buying a terraced house takes 57.5× annual pay in Kensington and Chelsea and 5.2× in Newcastle upon Tyne. Renting one takes 103% of pay in Kensington and Chelsea and 44% in Newcastle upon Tyne. Both are harder in Kensington and Chelsea, and the gap is wider for buying.

Across all property types and measured against pay, Kensington and Chelsea is the most expensive of 316 areas to buy in, and Newcastle upon Tyne is the 53rd least expensive of 316 areas. For renting against pay, Kensington and Chelsea is the most expensive of 316 areas and Newcastle upon Tyne is the 70th most expensive of 316 areas.

Someone on £40,000 in Kensington and Chelsea would need about £2,500 in Newcastle upon Tyne to be equally placed to buy a terraced house, and about £11,500 to be equally placed to rent one. Keeping the same pay after a move to Newcastle upon Tyne 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 145.8 crimes per 1,000 residents in Kensington and Chelsea and 107.4 in Newcastle upon Tyne, so recorded crime per resident is 26% lower in Newcastle upon Tyne. The biggest difference is in vehicle offences: 14.6 per 1,000 in Kensington and Chelsea against 5.9 in Newcastle upon Tyne.

Can a typical earner buy?

Buying, by property type

Renting, by property type

Crime

Police recorded 145.8 crimes per 1,000 residents in Kensington and Chelsea and 107.4 in Newcastle upon Tyne, so recorded crime per resident is 26% lower in Newcastle upon Tyne.

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.

In 2005 the average home cost £562,861 in Kensington and Chelsea and £138,227 in Newcastle upon Tyne. Now it is £1,327,221 and £204,282: Kensington and Chelsea is up 136% and Newcastle upon Tyne is up 48%. Prices have risen faster in Kensington and Chelsea, so the gap between the two has widened.

How rents have changed in each area

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

In 2015 the average rent was £2,713 a month in Kensington and Chelsea and £690 in Newcastle upon Tyne. Now it is £3,690 and £1,215: up 36% in Kensington and Chelsea and up 76% in Newcastle upon Tyne. Rents have risen faster in Newcastle upon Tyne.

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 Kensington and Chelsea to Newcastle upon Tyne

Moving from Newcastle upon Tyne to Kensington and Chelsea

All Kensington and Chelsea figures · All Newcastle upon Tyne figures