Methodology · scoring

Rental affordability score

Rent-to-takehome ratio at council-area level, mapped to a 0–100 scale: 100 = ratio at or below 30% (the affordability rule of thumb), 0 = ratio at or above 60%.

Formula

The maths

rental_affordability = clamp(0, 100, 100 × (60 − rent_to_takehome_pct) / 30)

Data sources

What feeds this score

ONS Private Rental Prices (PIPR)Council area
ONS Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings (ASHE)Council area (residence-based)
HMRC personal allowance + tax brackets (2026)National

Limitations

What this score doesn't capture

ASHE is the median resident salary at council-area level — actual takehome varies enormously by household composition, second incomes, etc. We're showing affordability for someone earning the council-area median; not affordability for any specific household.
Rents are council-area level too. So the score is identical for every local area inside a council area. This is the most coarse-grained of the five composite scores, and we say so on every page.

Last methodology change: 29 April 2026. See /changelog for prior revisions, or contact hello@placetrics.co.uk with corrections.