YORK is one of the least affordable places in the UK to buy a home, with properties typically costing nearly eight times earnings, a report has found.
According to Lloyds Bank, the city is the most unaffordable place to live in the north and eighteenth least affordable in the UK as a whole.
Home affordability in cities across the UK, are at their worst levels since 2008, with properties typically costing nearly seven times earnings, the report details.
The average house price in a UK city has surged by nearly a third over the last five years, with the average home costing £224,926 in 2017.
Over the same period, average annual earnings in a city have seen only a seven per cent increase, rising to £32,796.
In York, properties cost 7.6 times average local earnings.
Five cities have average house prices commanding at least ten times typical annual earnings.
These cities are Oxford, London, Winchester, Cambridge and Chichester.
Stirling in Scotland was identified as the UK’s most affordable city, with the average house price there put at 3.7 times local earnings.
Londonderry, Belfast and Lisburn in Northern Ireland are also among the most affordable cities, as are Bradford and Sunderland, Hull and Swansea.
Andy Mason, Lloyds Bank mortgage products director, said: “City living is becoming increasingly expensive with average house prices at least ten times average annual earnings in five of the UK’s cities.
“Affordability levels have worsened for four consecutive years as average city house prices continue to rise more steeply than average wage growth.
“House prices in the South have generally seen stronger growth than in the North.
"St Albans has recorded the biggest gains over the past decade, whilst London has been the top performer during the recovery.”
London has seen the fastest house price growth over the last five years, with a 57 per cent uplift taking average prices to £467,001.
Lloyds used house prices from its banking group’s database as well as Office for National Statistics (ONS) average earnings figures for the research.
Based on house prices and salaries, the most unaffordable cities are: Oxford, London, Winchester, Cambridge, Chichester, Brighton and Hove, Bath, Southampton, Salisbury, Canterbury, St Albans, Bristol, Lichfield, Truro, Norwich, Chelmsford, Exeter, York, Leicester and Gloucester.