What Was The Average Romford House Price In 1952?

Posted on: 15 June 2022

What Was The Average Romford House Price in 1952?

 

Well, what a weekend that was. Street parties, gatherings in the park, the purple bunting, egg and cress sandwiches, union jack flags, cheese and pineapple on cocktail sticks, and let's not forget the trifle – the Platinum Jubilee Party. And no decent party is worth its salt without a game or a quiz.

 

So, if you have post-Jubilee blues, let me ask you, how much was the average Romford house worth in 1952?

 

To start with, let me look at what a property is worth today in Romford.

 

The average price paid for a property in the Romford area in the last 12 months was £412,600.

 

Now, let's go back to 1952. Sir Winston Churchill was the Prime Minister, Newcastle won the FA Cup, London was covered in the Great Smog, free prescriptions on the NHS ended (it cost 1 shilling or 5p in new money), and King George IV, at the age of 56 passed away on the 6th February, meaning Princess Elizabeth became the Queen - as for housing…

 

The average price of a Romford home in 1952 was £3,369.

 

This means Romford house prices are 121 times higher since 1952.

 

Yet over the last 70 years, the country has been subjected to 4.5% per annum inflation.

 

The 1952 Romford home is equivalent to £64,788 today when adjusted for inflation.

 

This means Romford house prices have increased by 504.8% in real terms since 1952.

 

So, does that mean house prices are more expensive today compared to 1952?

 

In 1952, the average annual male wage was £452, 8 shillings and 1 pence, meaning the average Romford house was 7.45 times the average wage. Today the average home is 8.85 times the average wage.

 

Yet let us not forget the average mortgage payment in 1952 was £11 per month. The average Brit earned £34 per month, meaning 32.3% of the household income was going on mortgage payments, whilst nationally today, according to the Nationwide, it stands at 28%.

 

It's cheaper, in real terms, to buy a property in 2022 than in 1952.

 

And that’s the point, some things in ‘real terms’ (real terms being true spending power of the money after taking into account wages, costs and inflation) were more expensive and some cheaper 70 years ago. For example, in 1952, petrol was equivalent (in today’s inflation-adjusted prices) to £1.02 per litre, a pint of beer £2, half a dozen eggs £2.20,

cheddar cheese £2.40 per 500g, a basic radio £430, a Hoover £530 and a 12-inch TV £1,600.

 

So back to property, the Queen’s reign has seen some amazing house price rises in the UK, yet that growth hasn’t always been in constant upwards direction as we have had a couple of dips along the way.

 

Share:


Recent Articles

28 June 2025

Romford Rental Property Market: 5 Year Overview & 2025 Landlord Outlook

Over the past five years, Romford's private rental market has experienced a significant growth in rents. The average monthly rent has increased from £1,282 in 2020 to £1,768 in 2025, representing a 38% rise. These local trends are interesting when compared with the national...

Read More

23 June 2025

Over 4 In 10 Romford Homes Fail To Sell

  How do you beat those odds? When most people decide to put their Romford home on the market, they assume one thing. That it will sell. After all, why wouldn’t it? You instruct an estate agent, the board goes up, photos appear on the portals and viewings get booked and...

Read More

23 June 2025

68% More Romford Homes For Sale Than 3 Years Ago

At first glance, that number stands out. More homes. More choice. But that's only half the story. Although the number of properties for sale locally has increased since 2022, the number of homes  selling  has also increased.   Nationally, regionally and locally in Romford,...

Read More

Get a FREE instant valuation

Find out how much your property is worth