Pay vs Place

Manchester vs Westmorland and Furness: buying or renting a home

A typical terraced house costs £90,655 (55%) more in Manchester than in Westmorland and Furness. Measured against local pay, buying is harder in Manchester: it takes 7.1× median annual pay, against 4.0× in Westmorland and Furness.

Manchester, terraced
£256,000
Income typically needed: £51,000
Median full-time pay: £36,278
Westmorland and Furness, terraced
£165,345
Income typically needed: £33,000
Median full-time pay: £41,859

At a glance

Manchester Westmorland and Furness
Buying a home Fairly affordable Fairly affordable
Renting a home Very expensive Affordable
Recorded crime High 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 Westmorland and Furness (£41,859) is 15% higher than in Manchester (£36,278), while a typical terraced house costs 35% less (£165,345 against £256,000). Set against local pay, Westmorland and Furness is the easier of the two for a typical earner to buy in.

Buying a terraced house takes 7.1× annual pay in Manchester and 4.0× in Westmorland and Furness. Renting one takes 46% of pay in Manchester and 23% in Westmorland and Furness. Both are harder in Manchester, and the gap is wider for renting.

Across all property types and measured against pay, Manchester is around the middle of 316 areas (188th most expensive) to buy in, and Westmorland and Furness is the 52nd least expensive of 316 areas. For renting against pay, Manchester is the 46th most expensive of 316 areas and Westmorland and Furness is the 21st least expensive of 316 areas.

Someone on £40,000 in Manchester would need about £26,000 in Westmorland and Furness to be equally placed to buy a terraced house, and about £23,000 to be equally placed to rent one. Keeping the same pay after a move to Westmorland and Furness 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 142.7 crimes per 1,000 residents in Manchester and 66.0 in Westmorland and Furness, so recorded crime per resident is 54% lower in Westmorland and Furness. The biggest difference is in vehicle offences: 7.9 per 1,000 in Manchester against 1.2 in Westmorland and Furness.

Can a typical earner buy?

Terraced house Manchester Westmorland and Furness
Median full-time pay £36,278 £41,859
House price ÷ pay 7.1× 4.0×
Median pay as a share of income typically needed to buy 71% 127%
Rent a year as a share of median pay 46% 23%

Buying, by property type

Type Manchester Westmorland and Furness Difference
Detached £400,000 £390,000 -3% in Westmorland and Furness
Semi-detached £310,000 £250,000 -19% in Westmorland and Furness
Terraced £256,000 £165,345 -35% in Westmorland and Furness
Flat £210,000 £150,000 -29% in Westmorland and Furness

Renting, by property type

Type (average rent a month) Manchester Westmorland and Furness Difference
Detached £1,878 £1,132 -40% in Westmorland and Furness
Semi-detached £1,496 £914 -39% in Westmorland and Furness
Terraced £1,405 £815 -42% in Westmorland and Furness
Flat £1,147 £693 -40% in Westmorland and Furness

Crime

Police recorded 142.7 crimes per 1,000 residents in Manchester and 66.0 in Westmorland and Furness, so recorded crime per resident is 54% lower in Westmorland and Furness.

Police recorded crime per 1,000 residents Manchester Westmorland and Furness Difference
All recorded crime (excluding fraud) 142.7 66.0 -54% in Westmorland and Furness
Violence against the person 51.9 29.5 -43% in Westmorland and Furness
Sexual offences 5.6 3.5 -37% in Westmorland and Furness
Robbery 2.7 0.3 -90% in Westmorland and Furness
Residential burglary (per 1,000 households) 9.3 2.7 -71% in Westmorland and Furness
Vehicle offences 7.9 1.2 -85% in Westmorland and Furness
Theft from the person 3.9 0.3 -92% in Westmorland and Furness
Criminal damage and arson 10.0 6.8 -32% in Westmorland and Furness

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.

Manchester: 251Westmorland and Furness: 159
House prices in Manchester and Westmorland and Furness since 2005, indexed so that 2005 is 100Prices indexed to 2005 = 100. Manchester now 251, Westmorland and Furness now 159.10015020025030020052010201520202025House prices in Manchester and Westmorland and Furness since 2005, indexed so that 2005 is 100Prices indexed to 2005 = 100. Manchester now 251, Westmorland and Furness now 159.10015020025030020102020
Show the figures
YearManchesterWestmorland and Furness
2005100100
2006117110
2007129119
2008125118
2009112109
2010115113
2011114112
2012115109
2013115109
2014125112
2015133116
2016145120
2017158124
2018167128
2019173131
2020178133
2021209142
2022231154
2023233155
2024241157
2025247157
12 months to July 2026251159

In 2005 the average home cost £100,202 in Manchester and £141,261 in Westmorland and Furness. Now it is £251,205 and £225,218: Manchester is up 151% and Westmorland and Furness is up 59%. Prices have risen faster in Manchester, so the gap between the two has narrowed.

How rents have changed in each area

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

Manchester: 174Westmorland and Furness: 151
Rents in Manchester and Westmorland and Furness since 2015, indexed so that 2015 is 100Rents indexed to 2015 = 100. Manchester now 174, Westmorland and Furness now 151.100120140160180201620182020202220242026Rents in Manchester and Westmorland and Furness since 2015, indexed so that 2015 is 100Rents indexed to 2015 = 100. Manchester now 174, Westmorland and Furness now 151.100120140160180201520202025
Show the figures
YearManchesterWestmorland and Furness
2015100100
2016101101
2017106104
2018112107
2019114110
2020117112
2021120115
2022127119
2023139124
2024156131
2025167141
August 2026174151

In 2015 the average rent was £790 a month in Manchester and £541 in Westmorland and Furness. Now it is £1,373 and £816: up 74% in Manchester and up 51% in Westmorland and Furness. 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 Manchester to Westmorland and Furness

Earning in Manchester Equivalent to buy in Westmorland and Furness Equivalent to rent in Westmorland and Furness
£30,000 £19,500 £17,500
£40,000 £26,000 £23,000
£50,000 £32,500 £29,000
£60,000 £39,000 £35,000

Moving from Westmorland and Furness to Manchester

Earning in Westmorland and Furness Equivalent to buy in Manchester Equivalent to rent in Manchester
£30,000 £46,500 £51,500
£40,000 £62,000 £69,000
£50,000 £77,500 £86,000
£60,000 £93,000 £103,500
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 Manchester figures · All Westmorland and Furness figures