Between 2001 and 2007, as house prices shot up by an astonishing 207%, the average wage packet in the borough rose by just 21%.
The dramatic consequence of this widening gap, says the Housing Executive, is that the proportion of affordable housing in Newtownabbey has plummeted from a 54% level in 2001 to zero by last year.
The figures, revealed by Housing Executive director Colm McCaughley during a recent meeting with Newtownabbey councillors, make depressing reading for first-time buyers who are struggling to get a foot on the housing ladder.
Presenting the latest Newtownabbey District Plan to the Borough Council, Mr. McCaughley revealed that the average local property price increased by £104,500 and the typical salary by £3,636 between 2001 and 2007.
He used the statistics to illustrate how the relationship between houses prices and local income is a "key factor".
Explained the director: "The rapid increase in house prices has created an acute affordability problem in the Newtownabbey borough. First-time buyers are finding it difficult to access the owner-occupied market and mortgages are harder to obtain."
The director described the local private rented sector, which increased from 1,330 properties in 2001 to 3,070 in 2006, as a "viable and affordable housing option".
In his report to the Council, Mr. McCaughley also highlighted concerns over a sharp increase in the waiting list for Housing Executive accomodation in Newtownabbey - and the pressure to meet the need for over 600 new social housing units across the borough by 2012.