Buying a home now “doesn’t feel realistic” as Nottingham houses are 30% less affordable than ten years ago.
The average Nottingham home now costs six and a half times typical annual earnings, compared to five times a decade ago.
Morgan Davies-Brown, 23, from Stapleford, graduated two years ago and is currently living at home while trying to save for his first property.
He said: “As of right now, buying a home doesn’t feel realistic, buying a house is a lot more than just gathering enough money for a deposit.”
Wages have not kept pace with rising housing costs, placing greater pressure on first-time buyers, younger workers and renters hoping to get on the property ladder.
With most mortgage lenders offering roughly four-and-a-half times annual income, someone earning Nottingham’s average salary of £26,512 could borrow around £120,000 – far short of the city’s average house price of £194,000.
And Nottingham’s wage is significantly lower than the national average salary of £30,467.
Local factors such as the limited supply of land within the city and a relatively young and low earning population further constrain affordability and demand for housing.
These pressures are already shaping major life decisions for many young people in Nottingham.
Morgan’s salary as a financial analyst sits just above the city’s average, but buying a home alone remains a difficult prospect as he can only save £200 per month.
He added: “The issue with saving is that, in the current climate, rising living costs and current events affecting fuel prices mean there are many variables at play.”
Nottingham’s housing affordability ratio rose from 5.0 in 2015 to 6.5 in 2025, a 30% drop in affordability.
The area’s housing remains more affordable than Northwest Leicestershire but slightly less affordable than Derby, which has followed a broadly similar trajectory over the past decade.
Meanwhile, County Durham consistently ranked among England’s most affordable housing markets throughout the ten‑year period, with local property prices generally falling within what residents could realistically borrow.
And at the other end of the scale, Kensington and Chelsea possessed the least affordable housing, as workers face paying almost 22 times their salary for a property.
The England average is between seven and eight.
Nottingham City Council housing strategy specialist Geoff Oxendale stated the trends are the result of long-term structural pressures.
He said: “House prices have generally risen at a higher rate than earnings over the period, driving the rise in the affordability ratio.
“The supply of new housing has consistently been lower than demand over many years, putting increasing pressure on house prices.”
The council argues that improving affordability depends on increasing the supply of affordable housing and raising income.
Geoff said: “The Nottingham Economic Growth Plan sets out plans to increase the number and quality of jobs in the area and skill levels for local residents, which should result in increased incomes and improvements in housing affordability.”
While the government provides schemes for first-time buyers, they often assume buyers can save for a deposit – something increasingly difficult in Nottingham, where renters spend a higher than average proportion of their income on housing.
For many young people, the reality of saving for a home means balancing long-term goals with everyday life.
Morgan added: “I’m not putting an immediate time limit on this goal as I shouldn’t have to put a complete hold on all non-saving expenses and miss out on making memories.”
