Buying alone isn’t the exception anymore
Buying alone isn't the exception anymore Single buyers represent around 39% of all first-time property purchases in the UK, according to Zoopla's analysis published in February 2026.
That figure is large enough to make solo homeownership a mainstream route onto the property ladder rather than a niche one, and it reflects a shift in how first-time buying actually happens in practice. The challenge is that one income is, by definition, a different affordability calculation to two, and understanding where that calculation works in a single buyer’s favour is the most useful starting point.
How single buyers search differently
Zoopla’s analysis made a deliberate distinction between the type of property a single buyer is typically looking for and the type a couple purchasing together tends to target. While couples seeking their first home commonly look at three-bedroom properties, single buyers are more likely to focus on one or two-bedroom homes. The analysis was built on that basis, comparing average prices of smaller properties against the average incomes of single earners in cities across Britain.
The result is a city-level picture of where the affordability equation is most manageable for someone buying alone. The price-to-income ratio, which measures how many times a single earner’s average salary the typical first home costs, is the key metric. The lower that ratio, the more of the purchase price a single buyer can reach on a standard mortgage.
Where the numbers are most accessible
The most affordable city in the analysis was Aberdeen in Scotland, with a typical first-home price of £114,700 against average single earner income of £33,100, giving a price-to-income ratio of 3.5. Sunderland in the North East followed at 3.7, where the average one or two-bedroom home was priced at £106,700 against average earnings of £28,600. Hull in Yorkshire and the Humber recorded a ratio of 4.1 on an average price of £115,300. Liverpool in the North West came in at 4.3 with an average first-home price of £137,100. Stoke-on-Trent and Swansea both recorded ratios of 4.5. Moving south and east, the ratios increase consistently. Derby in the East Midlands recorded 5.4, Peterborough in the East of England 6.0, Plymouth in the South West 6.2, and Milton Keynes in the South East 6.3. In the London area specifically, Havering was identified as the most affordable borough, with an average one or two-bedroom home price of £305,200 against average single earnings of £41,600, producing a ratio of 7.3.
These figures are city-specific and should be read as such. They represent the most accessible location within each region, not an average condition across that region.
What this means in practice
The practical implication for a single first-time buyer is that location flexibility, where personal and professional circumstances allow it, is one of the most powerful affordability tools available. A buyer who can genuinely consider cities outside the most expensive areas of England, or who is open to smaller markets in Scotland, Wales, or northern England, is working within a meaningfully different set of numbers.
The analysis was published in February 2026, when mortgage rates were running at approximately 4%. The Iran conflict that began in late February pushed two-year fixed rates sharply higher. By July 2026 rates had eased slightly to around 5.54%, before rising again to approximately 5.6% in August. The Bank of England held its base rate at 3.75% at its August meeting, with the next MPC decision due on 17 September 2026. The directional picture of which cities offer the most accessible ratios for single buyers remains consistent with Zoopla’s source data, but any monthly repayment figures derived from that analysis were calculated at the lower rates prevailing in early 2026. At current rates, the monthly cost of any given mortgage will be meaningfully higher than those earlier illustrations suggest.
For a single buyer approaching the process now, combining the price-to-income picture with an accurate understanding of current borrowing costs through a whole-of-market mortgage broker gives the most reliable view of what is genuinely achievable today.
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This article was originally published by BriefYourMarket and is reproduced here with their permission.
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