The ONS has released a housing summary showing the state of the property market up until the end of 2015.

The figures pre-date the 2016 Stamp Duty rush and Brexit vote but do paint a picture of market activity and areas where it is most difficult for buyers to get on the property ladder.

According to the data, housing stock turnover decreased slightly to 4.3% in 2015.

Out of the 348 local authorities in England and Wales, 12 had a decrease in housing market activity between 2010 and 2015.

Housing market activity in England and Wales increased between 2012 and 2014, rising from 3.3% of housing stock turnover in 2012 to 4.5% in 2014.

Salford had the biggest increase in turnover at 2.3% while Islington had the biggest fall at 1.3% between 2010 and 2015.

The median price paid for residential properties in England and Wales overall was £207,500 in 2015, which is an increase of £12,500 (6.4%) since 2014, according to the ONS.

Meanwhile, the median salary is shown to be £22,578, making house prices nine times earnings.

House prices have now increased by 90% since 2002 while earnings have gone up by just over 30%, according to the report, showing that buying a house has become less affordable.

In 2015, Westminster had the highest ratio of house prices to annual salary in England and Wales, with house prices, at £877,000 on average, being 23 times greater than median gross annual salary, while the average house price of £78,000 in Burnley is less than four times the median annual salary, the ONS said.

Times are equally tough for renters. Out of all the local authorities in England, 76 areas had a median private rent price of less than 30% of median salary. The highest percentage of rent price to monthly salary in 2015 was in Westminster, where median private rent represented 73.4% of median gross monthly salary.

Copeland had the most affordable private rent, with the median private rent price being 18.5% of monthly salary.