Plymouth vs Torbay: buying or renting a home
A typical terraced house costs £5,000 (2%) more in Torbay than in Plymouth. Measured against local pay, buying is harder in Torbay: it takes 6.6× median annual pay, against 6.1× in Plymouth.
At a glance
| Plymouth | Torbay | |
|---|---|---|
| Buying a home | Fairly affordable | Fairly affordable |
| Renting a home | Expensive | 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 Torbay (£33,493) is 5% lower than in Plymouth (£35,186), while a typical terraced house costs 2% more (£220,000 against £215,000). Set against local pay, Plymouth is the easier of the two for a typical earner to buy in.
Buying a terraced house takes 6.1× annual pay in Plymouth and 6.6× in Torbay. Renting one takes 36% of pay in Plymouth and 34% in Torbay. The two measures point different ways: buying is harder in Torbay, but renting takes a bigger share of pay in Plymouth.
Across all property types and measured against pay, Plymouth is the 91st least expensive of 316 areas to buy in, and Torbay is around the middle of 316 areas (178th most expensive). For renting against pay, Plymouth is around the middle of 316 areas (143rd most expensive) and Torbay is around the middle of 316 areas (157th most expensive).
Someone on £40,000 in Plymouth would need about £41,000 in Torbay to be equally placed to buy a terraced house, and about £36,000 to be equally placed to rent one. Keeping the same pay after a move to Torbay 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 93.1 crimes per 1,000 residents in Plymouth and 93.4 in Torbay: about the same.
Can a typical earner buy?
| Terraced house | Plymouth | Torbay |
|---|---|---|
| Median full-time pay | £35,186 | £33,493 |
| House price ÷ pay | 6.1× | 6.6× |
| Median pay as a share of income typically needed to buy | 82% | 76% |
| Rent a year as a share of median pay | 36% | 34% |
Buying, by property type
| Type | Plymouth | Torbay | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Detached | £396,500 | £385,000 | -3% in Torbay |
| Semi-detached | £263,000 | £271,500 | +3% in Torbay |
| Terraced | £215,000 | £220,000 | +2% in Torbay |
| Flat | £138,000 | £142,500 | +3% in Torbay |
Renting, by property type
| Type (average rent a month) | Plymouth | Torbay | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Detached | £1,317 | £1,216 | -8% in Torbay |
| Semi-detached | £1,063 | £995 | -6% in Torbay |
| Terraced | £1,046 | £938 | -10% in Torbay |
| Flat | £799 | £713 | -11% in Torbay |
Crime
Police recorded 93.1 crimes per 1,000 residents in Plymouth and 93.4 in Torbay: about the same.
| Police recorded crime per 1,000 residents | Plymouth | Torbay | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| All recorded crime (excluding fraud) | 93.1 | 93.4 | +0% in Torbay |
| Violence against the person | 43.0 | 44.1 | +2% in Torbay |
| Sexual offences | 5.1 | 4.5 | -12% in Torbay |
| Robbery | 0.8 | 0.7 | -15% in Torbay |
| Residential burglary (per 1,000 households) | 4.0 | 3.9 | -2% in Torbay |
| Vehicle offences | 3.0 | 2.7 | -11% in Torbay |
| Theft from the person | 0.7 | 0.8 | +20% in Torbay |
| Criminal damage and arson | 8.9 | 9.2 | +2% in Torbay |
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 | Plymouth | Torbay |
|---|---|---|
| 2005 | 100 | 100 |
| 2006 | 106 | 105 |
| 2007 | 115 | 112 |
| 2008 | 110 | 109 |
| 2009 | 99 | 97 |
| 2010 | 105 | 102 |
| 2011 | 102 | 99 |
| 2012 | 103 | 99 |
| 2013 | 106 | 100 |
| 2014 | 111 | 104 |
| 2015 | 116 | 109 |
| 2016 | 120 | 115 |
| 2017 | 124 | 120 |
| 2018 | 128 | 124 |
| 2019 | 129 | 124 |
| 2020 | 132 | 128 |
| 2021 | 142 | 142 |
| 2022 | 159 | 162 |
| 2023 | 160 | 163 |
| 2024 | 161 | 157 |
| 2025 | 166 | 153 |
| 12 months to July 2026 | 169 | 151 |
In 2005 the average home cost £128,302 in Plymouth and £149,306 in Torbay. Now it is £217,021 and £225,769: Plymouth is up 69% and Torbay is up 51%. Prices have risen faster in Plymouth, 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.
Show the figures
| Year | Plymouth | Torbay |
|---|---|---|
| 2005 | 6.4 years of pay | 8.0 years of pay |
| 2010 | 5.7 years of pay | 7.8 years of pay |
| 2015 | 5.9 years of pay | 7.3 years of pay |
| 2020 | 6.0 years of pay | 7.1 years of pay |
| 2025 | 6.1 years of pay | 6.8 years of pay |
In 2005 a home cost 6.4 years of pay in Plymouth and 8.0 years in Torbay. In 2025 it was 6.1 years and 6.8 years.
Affordability has worsened more in Plymouth over that time.
How rents have changed in each area
Average monthly rent for all property types, indexed so that 2015 is 100.
Show the figures
| Year | Plymouth | Torbay |
|---|---|---|
| 2015 | 100 | 100 |
| 2016 | 101 | 100 |
| 2017 | 102 | 102 |
| 2018 | 104 | 104 |
| 2019 | 105 | 106 |
| 2020 | 107 | 109 |
| 2021 | 111 | 113 |
| 2022 | 116 | 118 |
| 2023 | 124 | 122 |
| 2024 | 133 | 127 |
| 2025 | 141 | 133 |
| August 2026 | 148 | 140 |
In 2015 the average rent was £678 a month in Plymouth and £657 in Torbay. Now it is £1,004 and £920: up 48% in Plymouth and up 40% in Torbay. Rents have risen faster in Plymouth.
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 Plymouth to Torbay
| Earning in Plymouth | Equivalent to buy in Torbay | Equivalent to rent in Torbay |
|---|---|---|
| £30,000 | £30,500 | £27,000 |
| £40,000 | £41,000 | £36,000 |
| £50,000 | £51,000 | £45,000 |
| £60,000 | £61,500 | £54,000 |
Moving from Torbay to Plymouth
| Earning in Torbay | Equivalent to buy in Plymouth | Equivalent to rent in Plymouth |
|---|---|---|
| £30,000 | £29,500 | £33,500 |
| £40,000 | £39,000 | £44,500 |
| £50,000 | £49,000 | £56,000 |
| £60,000 | £58,500 | £67,000 |