The salary you need to buy a house in every London borough in 2026

One thing we wish we could have left behind in 2025? London’s extortionate house prices. But, unfortunately, as we enter the new year buying a house in the capital remains a pipe dream to many. So, here’s a bit of bleak news to kick start your 2026: how much you need to earn to afford a house in every London borough, including a full list at the end.  

New data from Zoopla – reported in Metro – has revealed the average salary needed to afford the price of the average house in each borough in the capital. The salaries were calculated assuming the buyer would save a deposit that was 20 percent of the property value, plus a mortgage loan amounting to 4.5 times the buyer’s household earnings. 

Not surprisingly, London’s priciest borough for buying a house was Kensington and Chelsea, where the average house according to Zoopla costs an eye-watering £1.12 million. To afford a 20 percent deposit and then to pay the mortgage you would need to be on a salary of £199,300 or higher. 

Westminster wasn’t much cheaper, with the average house costing £936,900 and requiring a salary of at least £166,600. In Camden you’d need to be able to cough up £764,600 for your abode, meaning you would have to earn £135,900. 

The cheapest borough was Barking and Dagenham, where the average house cost a much more modest (compared to Chelsea, at least) £335,500. In B&D you’d need to be on a salary of £59,600, which is still much higher than the UK average salary of £37,430, according to the Office for National Statistics.

The average price of a house for all of London was £559,161, meaning that the average London would need to earn £99,406 to buy a house in the capital. Better start saving now. 

The average salary needed to buy a house in every London borough in 2026

• Kensington and Chelsea – £199,300 (average house price: £1,120,900)
• Westminster – £166,600 (£936,900)
• Camden – £135,900 (£764,600)
• Richmond upon Thames – £135,200 (£760,700)
• City of London – £130,800 (£735,700)
• Hammersmith and Fulham – £128,700 (£723,900)
• Islington – £117,100 (£658,700)
• Wandsworth – £116,900 (£657,700)
• Hackney – £105,900 (£595,700)
• Haringey – £101,800 (£572,600)
• Kingston upon Thames – £101,700 (£572,000)
• Barnet – £101,000 (£567,900)
• Merton – £100,300 (£564,400)
• Lambeth – £98,900 (£556,500)
• Bromley – £92,000 (£517,300)
• Southwark – £91,800 (£516,300)
• Brent – £91,700 (£516,000)
• Ealing – £91,600 (£515,500)
• Harrow – £90,800 (£510,600)
• Waltham Forest – £90,100 (£507,000)
• Redbridge – £84,500 (£475,300)
• Tower Hamlets – £84,200 (£473,600)
• Hounslow – £82,400 (£463,400)
• Hillingdon – £80,700 (£454,000)
• Lewisham – £80,100 (£450,600)
• Sutton – £79,200 (£445,200)
• Enfield – £78,300 (£440,300)
• Greenwich – £75,300 (£423,800)
• Havering – £75,200 (£422,700)
• Newham – £71,600 (£403,000)
• Bexley – £71,200 (£400,800)
• Croydon – £69,900 (£393,300)
• Barking and Dagenham – £59,600 (£335,500)

You can read Metro’s full study on the salaries needed to buy property in London boroughs here.

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