Nine in ten houses in South 'unaffordable' Andrew Hunter, Co-Founder of Adzuna, said prices have steadily become more unaffordable in the South due to rising faster than wages. This trend appears set to continue, with data from the ONS today showing that house prices are rising faster than the rate of inflation. However, buyers still face a marked north-south divide in terms of affordability. More than 90pc of houses in Belfast and Hull were within the price limit for someone taking their first steps on to the property ladder. The average price of £124,438 in Hull was only 2.2 times the average local couples" earnings before the 25pc deposit was deducted.