HOMES in Hampshire’s cities have become some of the least affordable in the country, new figures have shown.

Both Winchester and Southampton feature in the newly-released list, which also shows that the typical cost of buying a home in a UK city has reached its least affordable levels in a decade.

The average house price across cities equated to seven times typical annual earnings in 2017, the Lloyds Bank Affordable Cities Review found.

This is the highest house price-to-income multiple since the average city home cost seven and-a-half times earnings in 2007.

In 2012, the average city home cost around 5.6 times wages, but over the past five years, the average house price across UK cities has surged by over a third (36 per cent), reaching £232,945 in 2017.

Over the same period, average city earnings have risen by 9 nine per cent to £33,420.

Winchester was ranked as the sixth least affordable city for residents looking to get on the property ladding, with house prices averaging 10 times the typical salary – just 0.2 less than London in joint third.

Southampton, while a little more affordable at 8.9 times the average annual income, came joint ninth with Canterbury in Kent.

Oxford was found to be the least affordable city in the study, with average property prices equating to 11-and-a-half times average annual earnings.

Stirling in Scotland was identified as the UK’s most affordable city for the fifth consecutive year, with average property prices at around four times annual earnings.

Andy Mason, Lloyds Bank mortgage products director, said: “City living suits the lifestyles of many people looking for shorter commutes with much of what they need on their doorstep, but buying a city property is the least affordable it’s been for a decade.”

He said there is also a “clear North-South divide”, with the least affordable cities list dominated by the southern England.

Portsmouth was ranked as the 19th least affordable city.