UK homebuyers face worst mortgage affordability since 2008, data shows
Summary
In 2025, people buying homes in the UK face the hardest time affording mortgages since 2008, with mortgage payments taking up over 21% of their income on average. The cost and difficulty vary a lot by region, with areas near London being the least affordable and some parts of Scotland the most affordable.Key Facts
- Average mortgage repayments in the UK in 2025 take up 21.3% of a homebuyer’s gross income, the highest since 2008.
- The most unaffordable areas include north Norfolk and Hillingdon in west London, where repayments are over 25% of income.
- Many of the least affordable places are in the London commuter belt, such as Luton, Slough, Broxbourne, and Harlow.
- The most affordable areas are mostly in Scotland, like East Ayrshire and Inverclyde, where repayments take about 17% of income.
- The City of London appears affordable in the data because buyers there tend to have very high incomes.
- Despite high mortgage costs and difficulty saving deposits, mortgage borrowing increased by 17% from 2024 to 2025, reaching 723,000 loans.
- The Iran war starting in February 2025 raised mortgage costs further by pushing lenders to increase fixed-rate mortgage prices or remove deals.
- Recently, the price of fixed-rate mortgages has started to decrease slightly.
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