Where to Buy Property Investments in Barnet: Yields of 5.7%
Barnet's top postcode-level gross yield sits at 5.7% in NW9, with asking prices across the borough stretching from £442,702 in Colindale to £1,344,146 in East Finchley. That three-times spread is the headline story in Barnet's buy-to-let data. A borough that looks expensive at the mean hides a narrow outer corridor where investor maths still work.
Barnet's mean asking price across 13 postcodes is £691,818, more than double the England sold-price average of £290,437. The population grew 9.25% between the 2011 and 2021 censuses, reaching 389,344, and the median resident earns £47,081 a year. The combination produces a price-to-earnings spread running from 9.4 times salary in NW9 up to 28.5 times in N2. Few London boroughs show that much internal variation.
This guide covers the London Borough of Barnet (ONS code E09000003), using all 13 postcodes that fall within the borough boundary: EN4, EN5, HA8, N2, N3, N11, N12, N20, NW2, NW4, NW7, NW9 and NW11. Some of these postcodes cross into neighbouring boroughs, so the data below reflects borough-attributed sales and listings only. For a wider regional view, see the north London buy-to-let guide or the broader London property investment overview.
Article updated: April 2026
Barnet Buy-to-Let Market Overview 2026
Barnet is London's second-most-populous borough and one of its most expensive, with mean asking prices running 138% above the England sold-price average.
- Average sold price: £588,123 (102.5% above England's £290,437)
- Asking price range: £442,702 (NW9, Colindale) to £1,344,146 (N2, East Finchley)
- Rental yields: 2.2% (lowest, N2) to 5.7% (highest, NW9) across all 13 postcodes
- Rental income: Monthly rents from £1,804 (EN5, High Barnet) to £2,655 (NW11, Golders Green)
- Price per sq ft: House prices from £528/sq ft (HA8, Edgware) to £759/sq ft (NW11, Golders Green)
- Market activity: Sales ranging from 12 per month (N12, North Finchley) to 32 per month (NW9, Colindale)
- Deposit requirements: 30% deposits range from £132,810 (NW9) to £403,244 (N2)
- Affordability ratios: Property prices from 9.4 to 28.5 times Barnet's median annual salary of £47,081
Contents
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by Robert Jones, Founder of Property Investments UK
With two decades in UK property, Rob has been investing in buy-to-let since 2005, and uses property data to develop tools for property market analysis.
Property Data Sources
Our location guide relies on diverse, authoritative datasets including:
- HM Land Registry UK House Price Index
- Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government
- Ordnance Survey Data Hub
- Propertydata.co.uk
We update our property data quarterly to ensure accuracy. Last update: April 2026. All data is presented as provided by our sources without adjustments or amendments.
Why Invest in Barnet?
Barnet is London's second-most-populous borough, home to 389,344 residents at the 2021 Census, a 9.25% increase on 2011. That growth rate sits comfortably above the London average and reflects steady inflows into Colindale, Cricklewood and the Finchley corridor, where new-build supply has been concentrated. Population expansion of that size in a borough served by the Northern line and Thameslink, with the new Brent Cross West station linking into the Elizabeth Line at Farringdon, sustains a deep private rented sector, especially in NW9, NW2 and NW4 where most of the new housing has landed.
The borough stretches from Chipping Barnet in the north to Golders Green in the south, taking in Hendon, Mill Hill, Edgware, Finchley, Friern Barnet and Totteridge. It is the only London borough that crosses three postcode areas (N, NW and EN), a quirk that explains why the data below ranges across 13 postcodes when most London boroughs fit into 6 or 8.
Median gross annual earnings for Barnet residents sit at £47,081, very slightly above the London regional median of £46,940. Employment runs at 73.7% and unemployment at 8.2%, with unemployment notably above both the London regional rate of 5.6% and the Great Britain rate of 4.3%. Barnet Hospital (part of the Royal Free London NHS Foundation Trust) and Middlesex University's Hendon campus at The Burroughs are significant employers inside the borough, alongside the established Brent Cross shopping centre and the emerging Brent Cross Town development on the southern edge. Many residents commute into central London for work, a pattern reflected in the rental demand on the Northern line corridor through Colindale, Hendon and East Finchley.
Barnet Economic Summary
- Population: 389,344 (2021 Census). Growth of 9.25% from 2011.
- Median gross weekly pay: £905.40 (Barnet), £902.70 (London), £766.60 (Great Britain)
- Employment rate: 73.7% (Barnet), 75.0% (London), 75.6% (Great Britain)
- Unemployment rate: 8.2% (Barnet), 5.6% (London), 4.3% (Great Britain)
Source: ONS Explore Local Statistics for Barnet, Nomis Labour Market Profile for Barnet (ASHE 2025, Employment Oct 2024-Sep 2025)
Regeneration & Investment in Barnet
Three active regeneration programmes will add more than 10,000 new homes to the western side of Barnet over the next decade, all concentrated in the NW9, NW2 and Colindale corridor. That is not a coincidence. It is the same postcode cluster that already leads Barnet on yield, and the new supply is being delivered in the places where the borough's investor maths still work.
- Brent Cross Town: A 180-acre, £8bn mixed-use regeneration delivered by Related Argent in partnership with Barnet Council. The programme will add 6,700 new homes, three million sq ft of workspace, 50 acres of parks and the new Brent Cross West station, which opened in late 2023 and has cut the journey into central London to 12 minutes. By March 2026, 932 homes are complete including 150 affordable, alongside 600 student rooms. The scheme rewires the rental catchment across Cricklewood, Hendon and surrounding NW postcodes for commuter tenants.
- Grahame Park Regeneration: A long-running estate transformation in Colindale replacing 1,777 post-war homes with more than 3,000 new homes across social rent, affordable and private sale tenures, delivered in partnership with Notting Hill Genesis. At least 50% of the new homes are affordable. Phase 1 delivered 209 affordable homes across five buildings, and the next phases will add further density to NW9, the postcode that already carries Barnet's highest yield and the borough's highest monthly sales volume.
- Colindale Gardens: 249 new council homes completed as part of Barnet Council's commitment to deliver 1,000 new council homes by 2026. The scheme mixes 42 three-bedroom family homes, 40 wheelchair-adaptable residences, studios and one and two-bedroom flats, signalling continued local authority investment in the same NW9 postcode cluster.
Between them, Brent Cross Town, Grahame Park and Colindale Gardens will add several thousand new homes to the western arc of Barnet over the next decade. The new Brent Cross West station opened on 10 December 2023 and saw 575,000 journeys in its first year, below Barnet Council's original forecast of two million but still a meaningful foothold for a station that did not exist until recently. The direct Thameslink service into Farringdon and the Elizabeth Line at up to eight trains per hour in peak has reshaped the commuter catchment for Cricklewood, Hendon and the NW9/NW2 corridor.
Barnet Property Market Analysis
When was the last house price crash in Barnet?
Barnet is a London borough so all sold property prices from HM Land Registry are available at the borough level. The January 2026 borough average of £588,123 is down 8.8% from the October 2022 peak of £645,194 and down 4.2% year-on-year, a sharper correction than the London region (-1.7% yoy) and in clear contrast to England, which has edged up 1.1% over the same period.
Zooming out across the full 31-year Land Registry record shows the pattern that investors should weigh against the current correction:
- 1995-2007 (The Boom): Barnet prices rose from £98,948 in January 1995 to a pre-crash peak of £366,867 in November 2007. That is a 271% uplift over twelve years, driven by London's financial services expansion, rising owner-occupier demand and the gentrification of Finchley, Hendon and Mill Hill.
- 2008-2009 (The Financial Crisis): From the November 2007 peak of £366,867, Barnet prices fell to £304,000 by April 2009, a decline of 17%. The worst year-on-year reading came in early 2009. London as a whole fared similarly, but England's provincial markets saw steeper and longer declines.
- 2010-2013 (Stagnation and Slow Recovery): Prices moved sideways for three years, hovering in the £310,000 to £370,000 range. By the end of 2013 the borough had roughly returned to its pre-crash 2007 peak.
- 2014-2016 (Turning Point): Recovery accelerated from 2014 as Help to Buy, low interest rates and central London overflow demand pushed Barnet through its pre-crash peak and into new territory. By January 2015 the borough average was £489,392, already 33% above the 2007 peak.
- 2017-2019 (Pre-pandemic growth): Growth slowed as stamp duty reforms and Brexit uncertainty took the heat out of inner London. Barnet drifted sideways, ending 2019 around £540,000.
- 2020-2022 (Pandemic surge): The stamp duty holiday and the rush for space produced a sharp uplift. Barnet climbed from £553,336 in January 2020 to £616,863 in January 2022 and peaked at £645,194 in October 2022.
- 2023 (Rate shock): Bank rate rises pushed monthly payments higher and cooled demand. Barnet's average began its current correction.
- 2024-2026 (Current): Prices slipped from £611,415 in January 2024 to £588,123 in January 2026, a 3.8% drop over two years. The annual change reading of -4.2% places Barnet among the weaker London performers.
Over 31 years Barnet's average sold price has risen 494.4%, compounding at roughly 5.9% a year, but the journey has included one 17% crash and one 8.8% correction. Investors assessing the current dip need to hold the long-term trajectory and the short-term correction in the same frame.
Source: HM Land Registry House Price Index for Barnet, January 1995 to January 2026.
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View Property DealsSold House Prices in Barnet
The January 2026 Land Registry figures put Barnet's average sold price at £588,123, 102.5% above the England average of £290,437. That headline is already large, but the gap widens dramatically when you break it down by property type. Barnet's detached houses command more than three times the national average for the same type, while flats trade at a much narrower 68% premium. This is the split that shapes the investable stock in the borough.
| Property Type | Barnet Average | England Average | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Detached houses | £1,546,056 | £468,546 | +£1,077,510 (+230%) |
| Semi-detached houses | £828,855 | £288,046 | +£540,809 (+188%) |
| Terraced houses | £621,095 | £243,580 | +£377,515 (+155%) |
| Flats and maisonettes | £366,886 | £218,449 | +£148,437 (+68%) |
| All property types | £588,123 | £290,437 | +£297,686 (+102.5%) |
Barnet's detached housing stock sits at £1.55m on average, more than three times the England detached average. That reflects the borough's trophy-asset corridor through Totteridge, Mill Hill, Hampstead Garden Suburb and East Finchley, where large family houses trade to international and domestic wealth buyers. This is the least investable tier for a yield-focused landlord. The 12-month change on detached stock is -4.3%, slightly worse than the borough average.
Semi-detached houses average £828,855, 188% above the England figure of £288,046. The semi market spans a wider geography in Barnet, from the 1930s estates around Hendon and Finchley through to the tighter streets of Cricklewood. Growth on this segment is down 2.3% year-on-year, the strongest performer among the four property types in Barnet's current correction.
Terraced houses average £621,095, still 155% above England's £243,580. Terraced stock in Barnet concentrates in Cricklewood (NW2), parts of Hendon (NW4), Colindale (NW9) and the older New Barnet and High Barnet streets. These are the postcodes most likely to deliver a single-let buy-to-let that actually meets lender stress tests. Terraced prices are down 2.3% over the past year.
Flats and maisonettes average £366,886, only 68% above the England average and the segment with the largest annual decline at -6.3%. The flat market is the most exposed to Barnet's current correction, partly because new-build supply from Colindale, Brent Cross and Hendon has put weight on resale pricing and partly because rising mortgage costs have dampened first-time buyer demand. For investors, flats are also the segment where rental yields sit highest across the borough.
Property Data Sources
Our location guide relies on diverse, authoritative datasets including:
- HM Land Registry UK House Price Index
- Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government
- Ordnance Survey Data Hub
- Propertydata.co.uk
We update our property data quarterly to ensure accuracy. Last update: April 2026. All data is presented as provided by our sources without adjustments or amendments.
Price Per Square Foot in Barnet
Price per square foot across Barnet's 13 postcodes runs from £528 in HA8 (Edgware) to £759 in NW11 (Golders Green), a 44% spread within a single borough. Price per sq ft is the fairest way to compare postcodes because it strips out size. A cheap overall price can simply mean smaller stock. The table below shows the true ranking of stock value across Barnet.
| Rank | Area | Price per sq ft |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | HA8 (Edgware) | £528 |
| 2 | NW4 (Hendon) | £554 |
| 3 | N11 (New Southgate, Friern Barnet) | £573 |
| 4 | NW9 (Colindale, The Hyde) | £578 |
| 5 | EN5 (High Barnet, Arkley) | £589 |
| 6 | N12 (North Finchley, Woodside Park) | £612 |
| 7 | EN4 (Cockfosters, East Barnet) | £615 |
| 8 | NW2 (Cricklewood) | £621 |
| 9 | NW7 (Mill Hill) | £622 |
| 10 | N3 (Finchley Central) | £625 |
| 11 | N20 (Totteridge, Whetstone) | £636 |
| 12 | N2 (East Finchley) | £722 |
| 13 | NW11 (Golders Green, Hampstead Garden Suburb) | £759 |
HA8 (Edgware) comes in cheapest at £528/sq ft, 30% below the borough's top postcode. Edgware sits at the far northwestern edge of Barnet on the Northern Line's northern branch. It is the only Barnet postcode in HA territory and its pricing reflects that peripheral position. For investors looking for space per pound in a Barnet property, Edgware delivers more square footage than anything else in the borough.
The interesting twist is that NW9 (Colindale), Barnet's top yield postcode, sits at £578/sq ft in fourth place rather than at the bottom. NW9 is cheapest by total asking price (£442,702) but that reflects smaller flat-heavy stock rather than a fundamentally cheap market. It still commands 32% less per square foot than the borough leader but it is not the bargain end of the borough on a per-unit basis. HA8 and NW4 (Hendon, £554/sq ft) are the true value end.
NW11 and N2 together form the borough's premium tier at £759 and £722 per sq ft. These are Hampstead Garden Suburb, Golders Green and East Finchley, the trophy-asset corridor where international buyers, senior medical staff from the Royal Free London NHS Foundation Trust hospitals and successful professionals cluster. Stock here is large, period and often Listed. The per-sq-ft values look cheaper than central London but they reflect a fundamentally different buyer profile from the rest of Barnet. Landlord yields on this stock are under 3.5%, which the Yields table will make clear.
For Sale Asking Prices in Barnet
Mean asking prices across all 13 Barnet postcodes run from £442,702 in NW9 up to £1,344,146 in N2, with a borough mean of £691,818. Where the sold-price table in the previous section reflects completed transactions, asking prices reflect what current sellers think their stock is worth. In a borough where sold prices are down 4.2% year-on-year, the asking price ladder shows where sellers are still anchored and where they have adjusted.
| Rank | Area | Average Asking Price |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | NW9 (Colindale, The Hyde) | £442,702 |
| 2 | N11 (New Southgate, Friern Barnet) | £522,337 |
| 3 | HA8 (Edgware) | £532,079 |
| 4 | NW2 (Cricklewood) | £564,545 |
| 5 | N12 (North Finchley, Woodside Park) | £568,764 |
| 6 | NW4 (Hendon) | £589,611 |
| 7 | EN5 (High Barnet, Arkley) | £594,119 |
| 8 | N3 (Finchley Central) | £640,806 |
| 9 | NW7 (Mill Hill) | £682,667 |
| 10 | N20 (Totteridge, Whetstone) | £754,117 |
| 11 | EN4 (Cockfosters, East Barnet) | £804,042 |
| 12 | NW11 (Golders Green, Hampstead Garden Suburb) | £953,700 |
| 13 | N2 (East Finchley) | £1,344,146 |
NW9 is the only Barnet postcode where the mean asking price sits under £500,000. At £442,702 it is 36% below the borough mean and 54% below N2 at the top. This gap is the single most important number in the Barnet investor dataset because it determines which postcodes can deliver rental maths that stress-test at current mortgage rates. It is also the postcode where all three active regeneration programmes are landing new supply, which explains why sales volumes here are the highest in the borough.
The middle band from N11 to NW4 (£522k to £590k) covers seven postcodes. This band absorbs most of Barnet's transaction volume and most of its rental stock. New Southgate, Hendon, Edgware and Cricklewood all sit here. For a landlord comparing Barnet against London's highest-yield postcodes, this is the tier where the yield maths become borderline. The upper band from NW7 through to N2 runs from £682k to £1.34m, a range that sits above realistic buy-to-let territory for most investors and above the point where most lenders' stress tests will clear.
House Price Growth in Barnet
Growth patterns across Barnet over one, three and five years look nothing alike. Some postcodes that are falling now have risen sharply over five years. Others that are climbing now have fallen over three. NW11 leads on every window (+13.5% year-on-year, +22.1% over five years) while N2 trails on every window (-6.5% year-on-year, -13.6% over three, -4.0% over five). The table below ranks all 13 Barnet postcodes by five-year growth.
| Area | 1 Year | 3 Years | 5 Years |
|---|---|---|---|
| NW11 (Golders Green, Hampstead Garden Suburb) | +13.5% | +10.0% | +22.1% |
| N11 (New Southgate, Friern Barnet) | -2.0% | -5.8% | +14.7% |
| NW4 (Hendon) | +4.8% | -11.0% | +11.1% |
| NW7 (Mill Hill) | +2.5% | +9.9% | +9.7% |
| HA8 (Edgware) | +0.8% | +1.6% | +8.3% |
| N3 (Finchley Central) | +9.0% | +12.7% | +6.3% |
| N20 (Totteridge, Whetstone) | +7.5% | +12.2% | +5.0% |
| NW2 (Cricklewood) | +3.2% | -0.8% | +2.3% |
| NW9 (Colindale, The Hyde) | -2.6% | -3.3% | +2.2% |
| EN5 (High Barnet, Arkley) | +5.8% | +5.8% | +1.2% |
| EN4 (Cockfosters, East Barnet) | -2.3% | -0.1% | -1.8% |
| N2 (East Finchley) | -6.5% | -13.6% | -4.0% |
| N12 (North Finchley, Woodside Park) | +5.8% | -3.9% | -5.4% |
NW11 is the only Barnet postcode showing double-digit growth across all three windows. At +22.1% over five years, a £800,000 property bought in April 2021 would now be worth around £976,000 on paper. The driver is the low volume of stock in Hampstead Garden Suburb and the willingness of international and domestic wealth buyers to pay up during windows of opportunity. This is a growth story, not a yield story: NW11 also sits at 3.3% yield, near the bottom of the borough.
The middle of the table holds the genuinely positive five-year performers: N11, NW4, NW7 and HA8. All four sit between +8% and +15% over five years. NW4 in particular tells an interesting story. It is down 11% over three years but up 11% over five, which means the 2020-2022 pandemic surge pulled Hendon's prices forward and the 2023-2024 correction has been walking them back. The net remains positive and the recent twelve months show it recovering (+4.8%).
N2 and N12 are the borough's underperformers on the five-year view. N2 (East Finchley) is down 4.0% over five years and -13.6% over three, a significant correction on a postcode where the mean asking price is £1.34m. N12 (North Finchley, Woodside Park) is down 5.4% over five years. These are the two postcodes where the pandemic surge has unwound most sharply. NW9 and EN4 are close to flat over five years, which puts them in the middle of the road for growth even though NW9 leads on yield and EN4 is one of the more expensive outer postcodes.
Monthly Property Sales in Barnet
NW9 records 32 sales a month against the borough low of 12 in N12, a 2.7x difference in transaction volume between the busiest and quietest postcodes. Sales volume tells investors two things at once: how liquid the market is (can you sell when you need to?) and how much comparable evidence lenders have for valuations. A postcode running 30+ sales a month has plenty of recent comparables. A postcode running 12 has thinner evidence and can move more abruptly.
| Area | Sales per month | Turnover | Asking Price |
|---|---|---|---|
| NW9 (Colindale, The Hyde) | 32 | 4% | £442,702 |
| EN5 (High Barnet, Arkley) | 31 | 9% | £594,119 |
| HA8 (Edgware) | 30 | 7% | £532,079 |
| NW2 (Cricklewood) | 29 | 5% | £564,545 |
| NW7 (Mill Hill) | 24 | 7% | £682,667 |
| NW4 (Hendon) | 19 | 5% | £589,611 |
| N11 (New Southgate, Friern Barnet) | 18 | 10% | £522,337 |
| N2 (East Finchley) | 18 | 7% | £1,344,146 |
| EN4 (Cockfosters, East Barnet) | 17 | 5% | £804,042 |
| N3 (Finchley Central) | 15 | 6% | £640,806 |
| N20 (Totteridge, Whetstone) | 14 | 6% | £754,117 |
| NW11 (Golders Green, Hampstead Garden Suburb) | 13 | 4% | £953,700 |
| N12 (North Finchley, Woodside Park) | 12 | 5% | £568,764 |
Four postcodes dominate Barnet's transaction volume: NW9, EN5, HA8 and NW2 all run between 29 and 32 sales a month. Together they account for around 122 sales a month, roughly 46% of the borough total from 31% of the postcodes. These are the workhorse markets, and they share two characteristics: asking prices under £600,000 and a deep pool of 1930s and post-war stock that moves through the market regularly. NW9 leads on volume despite being the cheapest postcode, which usually suggests a liquid market rather than a struggling one. EN5 backs this up: similar volume, but with a 9% annual turnover rate, which means nearly one in ten properties change hands each year.
N11 shows the borough's highest turnover at 10% despite only modest sales volume. That combination signals a smaller postcode with a high churn rate rather than the largest postcode with the most transactions. For landlords watching for opportunity, high turnover postcodes tend to yield better buying evidence because there is more recent data to price off. NW9 sits at the opposite profile: 32 sales a month on just 4% turnover, which indicates a large stock base where properties change hands methodically rather than feverishly.
N12, NW11 and N20 form the quietest tier at 12-14 sales a month. These are the postcodes where buying evidence is thinner and where valuations can move sharply. NW11 in particular has only 13 sales a month on 4% turnover, which means a Hampstead Garden Suburb landlord has roughly 150 sales a year of comparable evidence to price against. That is fine in a stable market and difficult in a volatile one.
Property Data Sources
Our location guide relies on diverse, authoritative datasets including:
- HM Land Registry UK House Price Index
- Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government
- Ordnance Survey Data Hub
- Propertydata.co.uk
We update our property data quarterly to ensure accuracy. Last update: April 2026. All data is presented as provided by our sources without adjustments or amendments.
Barnet Rental Market Analysis
For investors weighing up whether rental property is a worthwhile investment in Barnet, the data below breaks down average monthly rents and gross rental yields across the borough's 13 postcodes. Readers comparing Barnet stock with wider UK opportunities can also scan current buy-to-let properties for sale across other regions where entry prices sit well below the London floor.
All 13 Barnet postcodes have active rental data, with monthly rents spanning from £1,804 in EN5 (High Barnet) to £2,655 in NW11 (Golders Green) and gross yields from 2.2% in N2 up to 5.7% in NW9. If you are looking to build a property portfolio in north London, Barnet's combination of a deep tenant pool and the widest yield gradient of any adjacent borough make the postcode-by-postcode read the only one that matters.
Average Rent & Gross Rental Yields in Barnet
NW9 (Colindale, The Hyde) tops the borough at 5.7% gross yield, 2.6 times the lowest yield of 2.2% in N2 (East Finchley). The Barnet yield table does something unusual for a London borough: every postcode has data, every postcode has a meaningful rent, and the gap between top and bottom is wide enough that it separates genuinely investable postcodes from trophy-asset ones.
| Area | Average Rent (PCM) | Asking Price | Gross Yield |
|---|---|---|---|
| NW9 (Colindale, The Hyde) | £2,099 | £442,702 | 5.7% |
| HA8 (Edgware) | £1,937 | £532,079 | 4.4% |
| NW2 (Cricklewood) | £2,089 | £564,545 | 4.4% |
| N11 (New Southgate, Friern Barnet) | £1,874 | £522,337 | 4.3% |
| N12 (North Finchley, Woodside Park) | £1,955 | £568,764 | 4.1% |
| NW4 (Hendon) | £1,951 | £589,611 | 4.0% |
| N3 (Finchley Central) | £2,045 | £640,806 | 3.8% |
| EN4 (Cockfosters, East Barnet) | £2,519 | £804,042 | 3.8% |
| NW7 (Mill Hill) | £2,123 | £682,667 | 3.7% |
| EN5 (High Barnet, Arkley) | £1,804 | £594,119 | 3.6% |
| NW11 (Golders Green, Hampstead Garden Suburb) | £2,655 | £953,700 | 3.3% |
| N20 (Totteridge, Whetstone) | £1,997 | £754,117 | 3.2% |
| N2 (East Finchley) | £2,435 | £1,344,146 | 2.2% |
NW9's yield advantage is driven by price, not rent. The £2,099 monthly rent in NW9 is mid-pack for Barnet, roughly the same as Mill Hill's £2,123 and Cricklewood's £2,089. What sets NW9 apart is the £442,702 asking price, 22% below NW2 and 48% below NW11 despite commanding similar monthly rents. That price gap is the lever, not the rental income. New supply from Brent Cross Town, Grahame Park and Colindale Gardens means NW9 has the deepest rental pool in the borough for commuter tenants on the Thameslink and Northern lines.
The 4.0% to 4.4% band, covering HA8, NW2, N11, N12 and NW4, is where Barnet's middle-tier investor maths still work. Five postcodes carry gross yields at 4.0% or above. At current buy-to-let mortgage rates, 4.0% gross is the minimum floor most lenders will stress at, so this band represents the borough's genuinely mortgageable yield territory. The pattern is consistent: each postcode sits between £500,000 and £600,000 on asking price and pulls rents of £1,870 to £2,090 a month.
The bottom of the table (NW11, N20, N2) is trophy-asset territory, not rental territory. NW11 pulls the highest rent in the borough at £2,655 a month, but against a £953,700 asking price that produces a 3.3% gross yield before costs. N2 at 2.2% is the lowest yield in the borough by a wide margin, and it is the only Barnet postcode where an unleveraged cash buyer would still produce a negative spread against five-year gilts. These postcodes are capital-growth plays for buyers with a different investment thesis, not income plays for landlords.
Is Barnet Rent High?
Rents in Barnet consume a significant share of local earnings, and the range is wide. NW11 (Golders Green) rents swallow 67.7% of median local gross monthly income at £2,655 a month, while EN5 (High Barnet) rents take the lowest share at 46.0% on £1,804 a month. That is roughly 1.5 times the affordability gap you will find in most outer London boroughs.
The median gross weekly salary in Barnet is £905.40, which equates to £3,923 per month or £47,081 per year. This is slightly above the London regional median of £902.70 per week and well above the Great Britain median of £766.60 per week. Data from the Nomis Labour Market Profile for Barnet (ASHE 2025).
| Rank | Area | Rent as % of Income |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | NW11 (Golders Green, Hampstead Garden Suburb) | 67.7% |
| 2 | EN4 (Cockfosters, East Barnet) | 64.2% |
| 3 | N2 (East Finchley) | 62.1% |
| 4 | NW7 (Mill Hill) | 54.1% |
| 5 | NW9 (Colindale, The Hyde) | 53.5% |
| 6 | NW2 (Cricklewood) | 53.3% |
| 7 | N3 (Finchley Central) | 52.1% |
| 8 | N20 (Totteridge, Whetstone) | 50.9% |
| 9 | N12 (North Finchley, Woodside Park) | 49.8% |
| 10 | NW4 (Hendon) | 49.7% |
| 11 | HA8 (Edgware) | 49.4% |
| 12 | N11 (New Southgate, Friern Barnet) | 47.8% |
| 13 | EN5 (High Barnet, Arkley) | 46.0% |
Every Barnet postcode shows rents above the traditional 30% affordability benchmark, with five postcodes above 50%. That is a feature of London, not a Barnet anomaly. Tenant household incomes typically exceed individual resident earnings (two-earner households, dual-income professionals, sharers) so the ratio here should be read as a relative measure across postcodes, not as an absolute statement about affordability.
The three most expensive rental postcodes (N2, EN4, NW11) consume over 62% of median local gross monthly income each. These rents are paid by the high-earning professional demographic that clusters around Hampstead Garden Suburb, the Northern line commuter belt into central London and the Finchley Road. NW11 at £2,655 pcm represents the Golders Green premium and is typically rented by professional couples and families rather than sharers. EN5 and N11 sit at the affordable end of the borough's rental market and are the postcodes where single-let buy-to-lets most often find a deep tenant pool on sub-£2,000 rents.
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Are House Prices High? Price-to-Earnings Ratios
Purchasing a property in Barnet requires between 9.4 and 28.5 times the median annual salary. This is based on the Nomis Labour Market Profile for Barnet showing the median gross annual income for Barnet residents is £47,081. The table below ranks all 13 Barnet postcodes by price-to-earnings ratio, lowest first.
| Rank | Area | Price-to-Earnings Ratio |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | NW9 (Colindale, The Hyde) | 9.4 |
| 2 | N11 (New Southgate, Friern Barnet) | 11.1 |
| 3 | HA8 (Edgware) | 11.3 |
| 4 | NW2 (Cricklewood) | 12.0 |
| 5 | N12 (North Finchley, Woodside Park) | 12.1 |
| 6 | NW4 (Hendon) | 12.5 |
| 7 | EN5 (High Barnet, Arkley) | 12.6 |
| 8 | N3 (Finchley Central) | 13.6 |
| 9 | NW7 (Mill Hill) | 14.5 |
| 10 | N20 (Totteridge, Whetstone) | 16.0 |
| 11 | EN4 (Cockfosters, East Barnet) | 17.1 |
| 12 | NW11 (Golders Green, Hampstead Garden Suburb) | 20.3 |
| 13 | N2 (East Finchley) | 28.5 |
NW9 is the only Barnet postcode with a price-to-earnings ratio below 10, at 9.4 times median salary. Every other Barnet postcode requires more than 11 times the median resident salary, and the top three (N20, EN4, NW11, N2) sit between 16 and 28.5 times. For a single-earner household on the Barnet median of £47,081, no postcode in the borough is affordable on conventional mortgage multiples without dual income, significant equity or external capital.
The median of the table sits between NW4 (12.5x) and EN5 (12.6x), which puts Barnet's typical postcode at around 12.5 times the median salary. For context, the England average price-to-earnings ratio in 2026 sits at roughly 8.5x. Barnet is materially more expensive on this measure. The top of the table tells the trophy-asset story: NW11 at 20.3x and N2 at 28.5x can only be bought by people whose income comes from sources other than Barnet's median salary pool, which is precisely why the capital growth story in these postcodes tracks international flows more closely than local wages. The affordability stretch is why Barnet's investable postcodes cluster at the northern and western edges of the borough, where the price-to-earnings maths still allow middle-income buyers and tenants to participate. Investors comparing Barnet against the best buy-to-let areas in the UK will find the ratio gap significant.
Deposit Requirements in Barnet
A 30% deposit on an average Barnet property ranges from £132,810 in NW9 to £403,244 in N2. Buy-to-let mortgages typically require 25% to 30% deposits, and lenders stress-testing rental cover at current rates will in practice push most applicants toward the 30% figure. The table below shows the 30% deposit required for an average property in each postcode.
| Rank | Area | 30% Deposit Required |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | NW9 (Colindale, The Hyde) | £132,810 |
| 2 | N11 (New Southgate, Friern Barnet) | £156,701 |
| 3 | HA8 (Edgware) | £159,624 |
| 4 | NW2 (Cricklewood) | £169,363 |
| 5 | N12 (North Finchley, Woodside Park) | £170,629 |
| 6 | NW4 (Hendon) | £176,883 |
| 7 | EN5 (High Barnet, Arkley) | £178,236 |
| 8 | N3 (Finchley Central) | £192,242 |
| 9 | NW7 (Mill Hill) | £204,800 |
| 10 | N20 (Totteridge, Whetstone) | £226,235 |
| 11 | EN4 (Cockfosters, East Barnet) | £241,213 |
| 12 | NW11 (Golders Green, Hampstead Garden Suburb) | £286,110 |
| 13 | N2 (East Finchley) | £403,244 |
The £132,810 entry point in NW9 is the lowest any Barnet buyer can access, 67% less than the £403,244 required in N2. Stepping up one rank from NW9 into N11 costs another £23,891 in deposit, then £2,923 more into HA8. The first four postcodes on the table (NW9, N11, HA8, NW2) sit within a £37,000 deposit spread, which is the realistic choice set for most Barnet buy-to-let buyers comparing entry options. Investors working with tighter capital might find better value examining below market value properties across the wider north London catchment, where the entry deposit can sit materially below the £130,000 figure even within the same postcode ring.
The top four deposit figures (N20, EN4, NW11, N2) all require over £225,000 in cash. At that capital level, most Barnet investors either pay cash outright or spread the same capital across multiple properties in cheaper postcodes or regions. A £403,244 deposit on one N2 property could alternatively deliver three £400,000 properties in Barnet's cheaper postcodes with 30% deposits of roughly £134,000 each, producing three rental income streams instead of one. This is one reason the investable stock in Barnet concentrates so heavily in NW9, HA8 and the middle band.
What the Barnet Data Tells Buy-to-Let Investors
Barnet's investable yield band sits in NW9, HA8, NW2, N11, N12 and NW4, with gross yields between 4.0% and 5.7%. Six of Barnet's 13 postcodes clear the 4.0% floor that buy-to-let stress tests typically require. NW9 at 5.7% is the only postcode offering meaningful headroom above that floor. Deposits in this band range from £132,810 to £176,883, and the tenant pool is deepest where the new Brent Cross West station, Grahame Park regeneration and Colindale Gardens are concentrating new commuter supply. Single-let and small-HMO strategies work best in this band.
The growth postcodes in Barnet are NW11, N11, NW4, NW7 and HA8, with five-year gains between 8.3% and 22.1%. Only HA8 and NW4 appear in both the yield band and the growth band, which makes them the rare Barnet postcodes where the income and capital stories converge. NW11 leads on growth at +22.1% over five years but sits at 3.3% yield, so it is a growth play for cash buyers rather than a leveraged income play. The data points to Hendon and Edgware as the postcodes most likely to deliver both streams in the next cycle, which is consistent with the new supply being delivered nearby.
Three postcodes sit at the weaker end of the Barnet data: N2, EN4 and N12. N2 (East Finchley) delivers 2.2% gross yield, has fallen 4.0% over five years and 13.6% over three, and requires a £403,244 deposit. EN4 (Cockfosters) combines 3.8% yield with five-year growth of -1.8%. N12 (North Finchley, Woodside Park) is down 5.4% over five years. These are the postcodes where the current borough-level correction has bitten hardest. N2 in particular is priced at a different strata of the market from the rest of Barnet and does not fit a typical buy-to-let portfolio thesis.
Licensing in Barnet is tighter than most London boroughs. Barnet Council operates a borough-wide additional HMO licensing scheme that runs from 27 October 2022 to 27 October 2027, and it captures any property let to three or more people from two or more households, not just the five-plus-person properties covered by the national mandatory scheme. A Phase 2 selective licensing scheme covering ten further wards (Childs Hill, Cricklewood, Edgware, Edgwarebury, Finchley Church End, Golders Green, Hendon, Mill Hill, West Finchley and West Hendon) has been approved and is pending Secretary of State confirmation, which would extend licensing to every privately rented property in those wards once activated. Landlords targeting NW2, NW4 or NW9 stock need to factor the additional HMO licence cost into buy-to-let maths from day one. See selective licensing schemes in England for a broader primer. Landlords targeting Barnet should also check the investment property and off-market property sourcing options that bypass the open-market listings most competitors rely on.
How Barnet Compares
Barnet's £691,818 mean asking price is the highest of its four adjacent London boroughs, £164,269 above Enfield at the low end and £101,688 above Haringey. Its 5.7% top yield sits in the middle of the pack, matched by Brent and Haringey and beaten only by Enfield at 6.2%. The table below shows how Barnet stacks up against Enfield, Brent, Harrow and Haringey.
| Location | Mean Asking Price | Mean Rent (PCM) | Top Yield |
|---|---|---|---|
| Enfield | £527,549 | £1,881 | 6.2% |
| Brent | £552,053 | £2,084 | 5.7% |
| Harrow | £552,343 | £1,943 | 5.2% |
| Haringey | £590,130 | £2,065 | 5.7% |
| Barnet | £691,818 | £2,114 | 5.7% |
Enfield is the cheapest of the five and delivers the highest top yield at 6.2%. A mean asking price of £527,549 sits £164,269 below Barnet and the best Enfield postcode delivers 50 basis points more yield than anything in Barnet. For an investor whose selection is driven by entry price and yield first, Enfield answers the question that Barnet makes difficult.
Brent matches Barnet's 5.7% top yield at a £139,765 lower mean asking price. Brent's £552,053 average sits below Barnet's entire middle band except for NW9, which means a Brent postcode delivering 5.7% can be bought with roughly £42,000 less deposit than Barnet's NW9 on an average property. The two boroughs share the Brent Cross Town regeneration catchment but Brent's rental market profile leans more heavily on Kilburn and Willesden than on commuter professionals.
Harrow and Haringey both sit between Brent and Barnet on price, with Haringey matching Barnet's 5.7% top yield at £101,688 less. Harrow is the lowest-yielding of the five at 5.2%, reflecting a rental market that skews toward longer-term family tenancies in its northern postcodes. Haringey's combination of lower entry price, same top yield and deep tenant pool through Tottenham and Wood Green makes it the direct competitor to Barnet on yield-focused investor selection.
For investors comparing at the London-wide level, the cheapest areas of London and the highest-yielding London postcodes provide wider context for Barnet's position in the market. Barnet comes in above the median on price and in the middle of the pack on yield, with NW9 as its single meaningful entry point.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which Barnet postcodes work best for buy-to-let investors?
NW9 (Colindale, The Hyde) is the only Barnet postcode with a gross yield above 5%, at 5.7%. Five more postcodes (HA8, NW2, N11, N12, NW4) sit between 4.0% and 4.4%, the band where most buy-to-let mortgage stress tests clear. Deposits in this band range from £132,810 in NW9 up to £176,883 in NW4. The top three postcodes by five-year growth are NW11 (+22.1%), N11 (+14.7%) and NW4 (+11.1%), but only NW4 overlaps with the investable yield band. The data points to NW9 for yield-led strategy, HA8 and NW4 for balanced yield and growth, and NW11 for a growth-focused cash buyer.
Does Barnet require an HMO licence for buy-to-let landlords?
Yes, and the Barnet rules are tighter than most London boroughs. Barnet Council runs a borough-wide additional HMO licensing scheme that started on 27 October 2022 and runs to 27 October 2027. It captures any property let to three or more people from two or more households, which is a lower threshold than the five-person rule used by the national mandatory scheme. A separate Phase 2 selective licensing scheme has been approved for ten further wards (Childs Hill, Cricklewood, Edgware, Edgwarebury, Finchley Church End, Golders Green, Hendon, Mill Hill, West Finchley and West Hendon) and would, once activated, require every privately rented property in those wards to be licensed. For an investor-grade primer on the underlying rules, see selective licensing schemes in England. In practice, HMO stock in Barnet concentrates in NW2 (Cricklewood), NW9 (Colindale) and parts of NW4 (Hendon), where older terraced and larger semi-detached stock supports 5-6 bedroom room lets. Middlesex University's main Hendon campus at The Burroughs sits inside the same corridor, and commuter-professional demand along the Thameslink and Northern lines feeds into a deep HMO tenant pool.
What is the average house price in Barnet?
The Land Registry January 2026 figure for Barnet is £588,123, down 4.2% year-on-year and down 8.8% from the October 2022 peak of £645,194. That compares with £290,437 for England (up 1.1% yoy) and £554,422 for the London region (down 1.7% yoy). Barnet's average is 102.5% above the England figure. Within the borough, asking prices range from £442,702 in NW9 up to £1,344,146 in N2, a three-times spread across 13 postcodes. The current correction has hit flats hardest (-6.3% yoy) and detached houses second (-4.3% yoy).
Is Barnet a rich area?
Parts of Barnet are among the wealthiest postcodes in London. NW11 (Golders Green and Hampstead Garden Suburb) has an average asking price of £953,700 and a £759/sq ft valuation, and N2 (East Finchley) averages £1,344,146 and £722/sq ft. These postcodes host a mix of international buyers, senior professionals and medical staff working across the Royal Free London NHS Foundation Trust's network of hospitals. Other postcodes tell a different story: NW9 averages £442,702, HA8 averages £532,079 and EN5 averages £594,119. Barnet's median resident salary of £47,081 sits very slightly above the London regional median of £46,940, nowhere near the level you would expect for the average asking prices at the top of the borough, which reflects the gap between owner-occupier wealth and salary-based income in the trophy-asset postcodes.
Will Brent Cross Town affect Barnet property prices?
Brent Cross Town is a 180-acre regeneration delivering 6,700 new homes, workspace for 25,000 people, 50 acres of parks and the new Brent Cross West station. By March 2026, 932 homes are complete including 150 affordable, plus 600 student rooms. The station opened on 10 December 2023 and clocked 575,000 journeys in its first year, below Barnet Council's original two million forecast but substantial for a brand new stop. For investors, the direct effect is on rental demand in NW9, NW2 and NW4, where the station catchment meets existing stock. The supply side of the equation matters too: several thousand new homes over the next decade will add to local comparables and may cap capital growth in the immediate NW2 and NW9 corridor. The net effect on existing stock will depend on how quickly the new town centre's commercial space fills with workers across the programme's stated 25,000-job target.
Where are the best buy-to-let flats to buy in Barnet?
NW9 (Colindale) is the single best postcode in Barnet for buy-to-let flats on yield, at a 5.7% gross yield on an average asking price of £442,702. Flat stock in NW9 is concentrated around the Colindale Northern Line station and the Grahame Park regeneration corridor, both of which have delivered hundreds of new one and two-bedroom flats over the past five years. HA8 (Edgware) and NW2 (Cricklewood) sit next in line at 4.4% yield each with sub-£565,000 average prices and meaningful flat stock from both period conversions and 1930s purpose-built blocks. The flats segment across the borough is the most exposed to Barnet's current correction (-6.3% year-on-year) but it is also the segment where yield holds up best. Investors looking for value entry points beyond open-market listings should also compare repossessed houses for sale and renovation properties where below-average pricing is common.