Anyone looking to buy a house in London would need an income of £103,000 or two and half times the amount required in Wales and Scotland, according to property website Zoopla.
An average deposit of £60,000 is also needed for first-time buyers to get started, said the website, a rise of almost £15,000 over five years and by £2.400 in twelve months.
Zoopla based its calculation on average asking prices of £250,000 for first-time homes, a 20% deposit and 3.3 times income as a mortgage.
London is the most expensive with Wales, Scotland and the North more affordable.
Izabella Lubowiecka, senior property researcher at Zoopla said the capital is such a challenge that people are now looking at cheaper options to improve affordability.
In Wales, first-time buyers need an income of £38,800 and in Scotland an income of £31,500.
The Building Societies Association (BSA) today added that more than half (56%) of people think the deposit required to buy a home is too high, rising to nearly two-thirds (63%) of first-time buyers.