In Peterborough it's in the region of £550 pcm for a 2/3 bed terraced house in a less stabby area.
1/2 bed flats you're probably looking at the £400 - 450 range in the same sort of area. Prices without council tax or other bills included. Council tax for band A is about £80 pcm (or £68 if you live on your own).

The economy doesn't rock, but Bramsche is fairly cheap, because it isn't near any major cities. The closest is Osnabrück, which isn't exactly big, 160,000 people, I think.

I have friends who live near Hanover, but in the town the unemployment is very high and prices are even cheaper.

We have a large national debt, although it is still peanuts compared to the USA.

On the other hand, most people don't get into debt over here, credit cards are still frowned upon by many and accepted in relatively few establishments... And the "normal" credit cards are linked to the bank account, so they are paid off 100% at the end of the month, what you can't cover goes on your overdraft. A few non-tied credit cards are starting to appear, but they are still more the exception than the rule.

Personal debt is not the problem in Germany Unlike the UK. It is the state of the German banks that are of far more concern. Deutsch Bank has leverage far higher than Lehman's when it collapsed. That is Germany's biggest problem.