Vale of White Horse vs West Berkshire: buying or renting a home
A typical terraced house costs £17,000 (5%) more in West Berkshire than in Vale of White Horse. Measured against local pay, buying is harder in West Berkshire: it takes 7.4× median annual pay, against 7.1× in Vale of White Horse.
At a glance
| Vale of White Horse | West Berkshire | |
|---|---|---|
| Buying a home | Expensive | Expensive |
| Renting a home | Expensive | Expensive |
| Recorded crime | Low | Low |
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 West Berkshire (£44,887) is 1% higher than in Vale of White Horse (£44,454), while a typical terraced house costs 5% more (£332,000 against £315,000). Set against local pay, Vale of White Horse is the easier of the two for a typical earner to buy in.
Buying a terraced house takes 7.1× annual pay in Vale of White Horse and 7.4× in West Berkshire. Renting one takes 37% of pay in Vale of White Horse and 34% in West Berkshire. Renting is harder in Vale of White Horse; buying is about the same.
Across all property types and measured against pay, Vale of White Horse is the 102nd most expensive of 316 areas to buy in, and West Berkshire is the 110th most expensive of 316 areas. For renting against pay, Vale of White Horse is the 117th most expensive of 316 areas and West Berkshire is the 124th most expensive of 316 areas.
Someone on £40,000 in Vale of White Horse would need about £42,000 in West Berkshire to be equally placed to buy a terraced house, and about £37,500 to be equally placed to rent one. Keeping the same pay after a move to West Berkshire 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 46.4 crimes per 1,000 residents in Vale of White Horse and 55.0 in West Berkshire, so recorded crime per resident is 19% higher in West Berkshire. The biggest difference is in vehicle offences: 1.7 per 1,000 in Vale of White Horse against 2.9 in West Berkshire.
Can a typical earner buy?
| Terraced house | Vale of White Horse | West Berkshire |
|---|---|---|
| Median full-time pay | £44,454 | £44,887 |
| House price ÷ pay | 7.1× | 7.4× |
| Median pay as a share of income typically needed to buy | 71% | 68% |
| Rent a year as a share of median pay | 37% | 34% |
Buying, by property type
| Type | Vale of White Horse | West Berkshire | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Detached | £555,000 | £625,000 | +13% in West Berkshire |
| Semi-detached | £380,000 | £400,000 | +5% in West Berkshire |
| Terraced | £315,000 | £332,000 | +5% in West Berkshire |
| Flat | £213,500 | £210,000 | -2% in West Berkshire |
Renting, by property type
| Type (average rent a month) | Vale of White Horse | West Berkshire | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Detached | £1,898 | £2,011 | +6% in West Berkshire |
| Semi-detached | £1,436 | £1,447 | +1% in West Berkshire |
| Terraced | £1,355 | £1,272 | -6% in West Berkshire |
| Flat | £1,140 | £1,104 | -3% in West Berkshire |
Crime
Police recorded 46.4 crimes per 1,000 residents in Vale of White Horse and 55.0 in West Berkshire, so recorded crime per resident is 19% higher in West Berkshire.
| Police recorded crime per 1,000 residents | Vale of White Horse | West Berkshire | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| All recorded crime (excluding fraud) | 46.4 | 55.0 | +19% in West Berkshire |
| Violence against the person | 19.2 | 20.7 | +7% in West Berkshire |
| Sexual offences | 2.3 | 2.4 | +7% in West Berkshire |
| Robbery | 0.3 | 0.6 | +122% in West Berkshire |
| Residential burglary (per 1,000 households) | 3.4 | 3.3 | -4% in West Berkshire |
| Vehicle offences | 1.7 | 2.9 | +69% in West Berkshire |
| Theft from the person | 0.3 | 0.2 | -36% in West Berkshire |
| Criminal damage and arson | 4.4 | 5.6 | +27% in West Berkshire |
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 | Vale of White Horse | West Berkshire |
|---|---|---|
| 2005 | 100 | 100 |
| 2006 | 105 | 106 |
| 2007 | 116 | 116 |
| 2008 | 115 | 114 |
| 2009 | 103 | 102 |
| 2010 | 113 | 113 |
| 2011 | 113 | 115 |
| 2012 | 116 | 116 |
| 2013 | 119 | 120 |
| 2014 | 131 | 130 |
| 2015 | 140 | 142 |
| 2016 | 150 | 155 |
| 2017 | 152 | 161 |
| 2018 | 156 | 163 |
| 2019 | 157 | 161 |
| 2020 | 158 | 161 |
| 2021 | 161 | 168 |
| 2022 | 174 | 184 |
| 2023 | 176 | 187 |
| 2024 | 175 | 183 |
| 2025 | 184 | 193 |
| 12 months to July 2026 | 189 | 193 |
In 2005 the average home cost £216,019 in Vale of White Horse and £208,303 in West Berkshire. Now it is £409,253 and £401,327: Vale of White Horse is up 89% and West Berkshire is up 93%.
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 | Vale of White Horse | West Berkshire |
|---|---|---|
| 2005 | 8.0 years of pay | 7.5 years of pay |
| 2010 | 7.8 years of pay | 7.7 years of pay |
| 2015 | 9.4 years of pay | 9.2 years of pay |
| 2020 | 9.0 years of pay | 9.5 years of pay |
| 2025 | 9.0 years of pay | 8.9 years of pay |
In 2005 a home cost 8.0 years of pay in Vale of White Horse and 7.5 years in West Berkshire. In 2025 it was 9.0 years and 8.9 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 | Vale of White Horse | West Berkshire |
|---|---|---|
| 2015 | 100 | 100 |
| 2016 | 104 | 106 |
| 2017 | 103 | 109 |
| 2018 | 103 | 111 |
| 2019 | 105 | 114 |
| 2020 | 108 | 114 |
| 2021 | 114 | 116 |
| 2022 | 119 | 119 |
| 2023 | 124 | 126 |
| 2024 | 133 | 135 |
| 2025 | 141 | 140 |
| August 2026 | 145 | 149 |
In 2015 the average rent was £931 a month in Vale of White Horse and £899 in West Berkshire. Now it is £1,352 and £1,338: up 45% in Vale of White Horse and up 49% in West Berkshire.
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 Vale of White Horse to West Berkshire
| Earning in Vale of White Horse | Equivalent to buy in West Berkshire | Equivalent to rent in West Berkshire |
|---|---|---|
| £30,000 | £31,500 | £28,000 |
| £40,000 | £42,000 | £37,500 |
| £50,000 | £52,500 | £47,000 |
| £60,000 | £63,000 | £56,500 |
Moving from West Berkshire to Vale of White Horse
| Earning in West Berkshire | Equivalent to buy in Vale of White Horse | Equivalent to rent in Vale of White Horse |
|---|---|---|
| £30,000 | £28,500 | £32,000 |
| £40,000 | £38,000 | £42,500 |
| £50,000 | £47,500 | £53,500 |
| £60,000 | £57,000 | £64,000 |
All Vale of White Horse figures · All West Berkshire figures