SOUTH Gloucestershire is the cheapest place to live in the West of England, new research has shown.

The statistics come from the Home Truths 2016/17 report by the National Housing Federation, which analyses housing data for the entire South West region, broken down by local authority.

It shows that a household living in South Gloucestershire, where on average house prices are cheapest, would need an income of nearly £63,000 to be able to afford an average 80 per cent mortgage.

Annual average earnings are only £27,253 in South Gloucestershire and house prices in the area are now £274,777.

This differs from the other members of the West of England Combined Authority, Bristol, and Bath and North East Somerset, which had average house prices of £290,197 and £381,089 respectively.

Nikki Knowles, external affairs manager for the National Housing Federation, said: “It’s disheartening to see how out of reach home ownership is for most young people while average rents are spiralling out of control.

“With land values at a premium and costs sky rocketing, delivering the amount of affordable homes the sub-region needs often proves very difficult. Ultimately, to deliver the homes the sub-region desperately needs, housing associations need more land to build on. Rather than continuing to sell public land to the highest bidder, public land needs to be made available for social housing.

“Housing associations are key to solving the housing crisis and we are collaborating with Local Authorities and the Combined Authority to achieve this goal.”

Cllr Erica Williams, SGC cabinet member for housing delivery said: “We welcome the news that South Gloucestershire is the most affordable place to live in the West of England.

“While there is still a long way to go to make home ownership a realistic proposition for most young people, this data shows that taking tough decisions and having a positive attitude to housing proves beneficial for our residents and helps makes South Gloucestershire Council such a great area to live.”