Average house price compared with resident median annual pay.
Cherwell Wages, Employment and Property Affordability
Resident earnings, employment, unemployment and affordability context for reading Cherwell prices and rents.
Jan 2025-Dec 2025 / ASHE 2025
Cherwell wages, employment and affordability
Resident earnings and labour-market context help explain local affordability, rental pressure and housing demand.
Resident population
170,426
ONS 2024
Median resident annual pay
£40,742
Cherwell
Median resident weekly pay
£784
Full-time employees
Employment rate
85.1%
Aged 16-64
Unemployment rate
2.9%
Economically active
Average monthly rent compared with estimated monthly earnings.
Labour market rates are from the ONS Annual Population Survey profile shown by Nomis. Where the local APS unemployment value is suppressed, the ONS model-based unemployment estimate is used. Earnings are ONS ASHE resident-analysis median full-time employee earnings. Annual pay is annualised from weekly pay for display context.
Incomes Explain Affordability Pressure
Wage and employment data does not predict house prices by itself. It gives demand-side context: how average prices and rents compare with resident earnings, whether employment conditions support demand, and where affordability pressure may limit the buyer or renter pool.
Cherwell’s labour market profile points to a relatively strong local earnings and employment picture. According to the ONS Annual Population Survey profile shown by Nomis, the resident employment rate was 85.1% in 2025.
That is well above the Great Britain figure of 75.5%. The unemployment rate was 2.9%, compared with 4.5% nationally.