Mostly settled, middle-aged homeowners, with more variety than the house prices suggest. Two in three households own their home. The typical resident is nearly fifty. One household in five rents from a social landlord. It is a village of people who arrived and stopped looking.
All the population figures here come from the 2021 census unless stated otherwise. About 67% of households own their home, and about 10% rent privately. The other main group is the 21% who rent from a social landlord, twice the share of private renters. Fernhurst's detached houses sell for close to a million, but social tenants outnumber private renters by two to one. Glossy descriptions of the village rarely mention that.
The median resident is 49. Only about 18% of residents are aged 25 to 44, the age group most likely to be paying a mortgage and running a school run at the same time. A couple in their thirties moving in will bring the average age down just by arriving.
Median gross household income, before tax, was about £73,000 for the surrounding area, modelled for the financial year to March 2023. That describes the incomes of three years ago, not today's. On that figure, the village is comfortable rather than rich. Most of the money is in the houses, not in the monthly pay.
About 20% of households are couples with dependent children, and about 9% are lone parents. Families are here, but they are a minority. In most households, the children have already grown up and left.
About 29% of households are one person living alone. Some of those are pensioners: 16% of all households are a pensioner living alone, counted within that 29% rather than on top of it. Many houses in a family-sized village have one occupant, often long-standing, who stayed after everyone else moved out.
About 38% of residents hold a degree, and about 15% have no qualifications. Full-time students make up about 2%. Few people here are studying now, and the typical resident finished their education some time ago.
As a community, Fernhurst is one of the village's strengths. It is settled, comfortable and more varied than its house prices suggest, although households with young children are in the minority.