Liverpool has been on the radar as a city for property investment for many years. So, what is the secret to the city’s lasting investment credentials?  Having just chosen Liverpool as the location for its first non-London office, specialist end-to-end property investment company Surrenden Invest, was keen to share its knowledge of the local market.

Sales Director Joanne McCormack reveals all…

Where is the Liverpool property investment market at today?
Liverpool has a buoyant market right now when it comes to residential investment opportunities. Government figures show that the city built an average of 713 homes per year between April 2009 and March 2016. However, the Home Builders Federation has estimated that the city needs to build 3,000 homes annually to keep up with demand. This has led to demand far outstripping supply, particularly considering the trend over the past decade for people to move into the city centre.
One consequence of this is rising rents. Rents rose by 4.4% across the North West in 2016. Home values have also been rising, with an increase of 22.7% across Liverpool over the past five years. Apartment prices have risen even more – by 25.2% over the same period.

What makes Liverpool an investment-grade destination?
Liverpool has an incredible amount going for it. As well as a thriving property investment market, the Liverpool City Region economy is performing well. It is leading the Northern Powerhouse area in terms of GVA growth per capita, as well as overall GVA growth. The city has a largely service-based economy, which was worth £29.5 billion in 2015. Added to that is the fact that Liverpool enjoyed a 56% growth rate for its fast-growing businesses between 2009 and 2015 – the highest rate in the UK.
The city is also investing a great deal in its future, with £900 million available to the city’s metro mayor over next 30 years. The SuperPort Action Plan alone, which covers the period from 2011 to 2020, will add £18.3 billion of additional GVA by 2030.

There has been talk of Liverpool becoming oversupplied with property, from your experience on the ground, do you feel this is the case?
Definitely not – we wouldn’t have opened an office here if that was the case!
Liverpool’s population increased from 435,500 in 2001 to 466,400 in 2011. Over the same period, 22 to 29-year-olds in the city centre increased fourfold, while the overall city centre population increase stood at 160%. This new trend for living in the city centre has led to a huge increase in demand for rental properties. Developers are racing to keep up, rather than creating an oversupply.

Which parts of the city are seeing greatest investor interest at present and why?
Investors are keen to be involved in several areas of central Liverpool. The waterfront Albert Dock area remains popular, while the Ten Streets area is one of the latest locations to capture investors’ interest. Ten Streets is particularly exciting as it’s undergoing a 15-20-year strategic overhaul that is focusing on building a new ‘creativity district.’ This will bring lasting, long-term benefits to Liverpool and investors are keen to be a part of that.

What is the typical property that buy-to-let investors are looking for?
There are a number of general characteristics that buy to let investors in Liverpool are seeking. Off-plan homes remain popular, though there is also a market for completed properties. Location-wise, the city centre and key regeneration areas are top of the list. Investors are also looking for a good blend of reasonable entry point in terms of price, but high end in terms of design and finish – there’s definitely a ‘Liverpool look’ that is winning investors over.

Liverpool has traditionally seen many overseas investors buying property in the city, is this trend still occurring today?
Yes, Liverpool remains popular with overseas investors. The Liverpool LEP is second in England for its foreign direct investment strategy according to fDi Magazine. It also ranks joint second in the list of top ten mid-sized European cities of the future 2016/17 and fourth out of all mid-sized European cities for its business friendliness. Combined with the city’s bustling property market and growing population, these factors mean that Liverpool remains popular with overseas investors.

Where are these overseas investors from and where and what are they buying?
We’re seeing significant interest from overseas buyers into Liverpool from Hong Kong and China together with the Middle East.  City Centre locations aside, typically for end users we are seeing the greatest interest from an investment standpoint around the Ten Streets regeneration area to the North and the Baltic Triangle area to the south of the City Centre

Tens of millions of pounds have been pumped into the regeneration of Liverpool. As a local resident, do you feel this has had an overall positive effect?
The money pouring into Liverpool has benefited residents. As well as infrastructure development projects, the city has benefited from enhanced cultural attractions and new business/leisure areas. These have not only created new jobs for residents, but also added to the city’s entertainment options.

How do you feel the Ten Streets regeneration project will benefit Liverpool?
The Ten Streets regeneration is a ambitious project covering 125 acres of former docklands. It’s going to benefit the city in several ways. The scheme is due to create around 2,500 job opportunities, which is obviously good news for residents. The aim to create a ‘creativity district’ will also give this part of the city its own distinctive character and create a legacy that will benefit future generations of Liverpool residents and workers through a diverse range of facilities. It’s a exciting project.

In terms of Liverpool’s economy, as part of the Northern Powerhouse, the city’s success is strategically important to the overall UK economy. Do you feel that the local economy has picked up?
As I mentioned earlier, the Liverpool City Region economy is at the forefront of the Northern Powerhouse area in terms of both GVA growth per capita and overall GVA growth. The economic pickup has been most clearly notable in terms of job growth.
Liverpool is reviving after years of decline with the city’s population growing as it gains a reputation as an economic magnet that can attract investors. Over the past decade some £5bn of investment has transformed the centre of Liverpool leading to excellent growth prospects as one of the UK’s best performing markets. The private sector is creating jobs at a faster rate than before the recession with big companies such as Deutsche Bank, Jaguar Land Rover & Unilever all moving large parts of their operation into the area

Do you feel that there are enough new jobs being created in the city?
In the five years to 2015, Liverpool reported the largest job growth in the UK, at 55% (alongside Manchester). Meanwhile, job vacancies in the city surged by 34.8% in Q1 2016, which meant that Liverpool had the strongest year-on-year job growth in the country. With schemes like the Ten Street regeneration and the SuperPort Action Plan adding thousands more jobs, there are plenty of new jobs being created here!

There has been much talk of late of people, especially young professionals, moving out from London to other parts of the UK. Why do you feel Liverpool is an attractive destination for migrants from London?
Liverpool offers a vast array of cultural attractions and leisure pursuits, as well as business opportunities. It does all this at a fraction of the cost of living in London, which is why so many people are trading life in the capital for a future in Liverpool. Liverpool’s fabulous night life and outstanding restaurant scene add to its superb arts scene and thriving property market. The affordability of property here – certainly when compared with London property prices and rents – is a huge draw.

What is your outlook on the Liverpool property market in 2018?
I’m excited about the future of the Liverpool property market, particularly as we move into 2018. JLL has projected house price rises of 2.5% per annum across the UK for the next five years and Liverpool tends to be ahead of the curve when it comes to increases in value, so the city’s housing market looks to have a very promising ahead!

For further details and property investment opportunities, visit www.surrendeninvest.com, email info@surrendeninvest.com or call 0203 3726 499.

• Surrenden Invest launches Liverpool’s iconic new development, The Tannery
• Historic Tannery enjoys prime spot in Liverpool’s most desirable area
• 6% NET yield & long-term growth projections appeal to domestic and international investors alike

In 1899 three brothers named Boston founded the Garston Tanning Company in Liverpool’s Garston, Merseyside.

The company would provide leather hides for the automotive, furniture, shoe and fancy leather goods industries.  The family-run business opened its processing factory on Garston’s King Street and over the next 100 years employed generations of local families.

In its heyday, Garston’s Tanning Company was one the largest producers of leather upholstery for the European car trade and one of the most important leather goods producers in the UK, handling about 12,000 hides per week.  In 1971 Garston’s installed one of the largest tannery drums in the world on its factory floor.

In the late 1970s jobs began to dwindle as foreign manufacturers took up the lion’s share of available raw materials. In 1999 Scottish Leather bought Garston’s, and seven years later the tannery on Kings Street was finally closed due to a downturn in sales, thus ending over 100 years of tradition and dedicated family craftsmanship.

The old tannery site stood derelict for the next decade until it was taken over by developer the Vinco Group to be transformed into 106 residential studio apartments, 136 one-bed and 139 two-bed apartments which comprise the luxury site today.

The Tannery, exclusively available from investment agency Surrenden Invest, enjoys a prime position in Liverpool’s L3 postcode area to the north of the city centre.  It is just 1.1 miles from the 125-acre Ten Streets regeneration project, which is set to create some 2,500 jobs, as well as being close to the £150m Great Homer Street regeneration scheme (known as the Jennifer Project), with its flagship new Sainsbury’s superstore and extensive retail offering.

This historic, once industrial part of town is rapidly becoming one of the most desirable and trendy investment locations in Liverpool, with The Tannery standing out as an iconic building on one of the most covetable roads in the city.

The building’s design draws from the site’s history as a tannery. Folded aluminium panels resemble the hanged leather that the site’s original building once housed, while horizontal breaks in the façade represent the leather press.

“We are delighted to be able to offer our clients a brand-new opportunity which far surpasses anything else previously available in the Liverpool area. This project delivers the design, specification and quality formerly limited to large capital cities such as London.  Not only that, but we are very proud to have been able to contribute to the bringing back to life of an important corner of the city which has a fascinating socio-cultural history.”

Jonathan Stephens, MD, Surrenden Invest

Apartments at The Tannery will offer bright, contemporary residences that blend spacious, private accommodation with extremely well designed communal areas and amenities. Facilities such as 24hr concierge, on-site gym, laundry facilities and underground secure parking are just some of the comforts which come as standard. Impressive views over the city centre complement modern interiors, designed to offer both comfort and contemporary appeal to urban residents.

Liverpool itself is packed with attractions which have contributed to its ranking as one of the UK’s top 5 visitor destinations.  The city has also been enjoying sustained property price rises, with data from Zoopla showing an increase in home values of 5.52% over the past year and of 28.35% over the past five years.

Prices at The Tannery start from £85,000 with net rental yields estimated at 6.0%. 

For more information contact www.surrendeninvest.com
London office: 0203 3726 499
Liverpool office: 0151 3477 459
Email: info@surrendeninvest.com

• Surrenden Invest announces expansion of business to Liverpool and Manchester
• Investment agency becomes the ‘go to’ consultancy for buy-to-let property investment
• Surrenden Invest attributes success to client trust and holistic approach to property investment

Jonathan Stephens, Managing Director of Surrenden Invest, started out with a very different vision for his future.

From a young age, Jonathan showed a keen interest and skill in professional equestrianism. He had thought this would be his lifelong career, but injury meant this wasn’t to be the case. Instead, Jonathan directed all his competitive spirit and drive to succeed into a career in the property investment sector.

From his first role in property investment in 2007, Jonathan worked his way up and gained vast experience within the industry before attaining all the skills required to open a consultancy of his own, Surrenden Invest, in 2015.

Three years later, Surrenden Invest enjoys a superb track record of working with some of the largest developers and housebuilders in the UK. It has established numerous professional partnerships and relationships to present its valued clients with off-market investment deals that would typically only be obtainable to institutional investors. This is one of the many reasons that Surrenden Invest has become the ‘go to’ consultancy for UK property investment.

Surrenden Invest offers a rounded approach to property investment, allowing its investors to entrust the day-to-day running of their portfolio to the in-house management team, which is comprised of a mixture of financial and property professionals. For those investors who prefer to do it themselves, they too can benefit from the advice and experience of the multi-talented team.

Over the three years since its foundation, Surrenden Invest has launched 38 developments, in 9 towns and cities in the UK. 20 of these have already been delivered, while the remaining 18 are on track to complete, on time, over the coming 18 months.

Such is the demand for Surrenden Invest’s services and investment opportunities that the company has already expanded from its London headquarters to open a secondary office in Liverpool’s financial district. Opened in October 2017, the Surrenden Invest Liverpool office takes the full staff complement up to 29.

The opening of the Liverpool office precedes that of the Manchester office, which will open its doors in early 2018. The local presence allows Surrenden Invest to deliver national services based around local knowledge. It is this divergence from a ‘one size fits all’ approach that has contributed to the company’s rapid and resounding success.

 “Expanding Surrenden Invest is a necessity. I am proud to say that the company has grown more than I could have even imagined over the last two years. This is down to the hard work that the Surrenden Invest team put in to ensuring we give our clients and development partners the very best service at every stage of the process, from pre-purchase through to completion. The opening of the new office in Liverpool is extremely exciting. We selected the financial district due to its central, prime business location. This enables us to enjoy even closer relationships with both our clients and partners alike. With the Manchester office due to open shortly, the outlook for 2018 is very exciting for Surrenden Invest.” 

Jonathan Stephens, MD, Surrenden Invest 

For more information visit www.surrendeninvest.com or call 0203 3726 499

• Surrenden Invest offers a more balanced, profitable and counter-cyclical portfolio
• 51% of survey respondents considering alternative investments in 2018 favour hotels (JLL UK hotels forecast 2018)
• New Whitley Bay hotel investment promises strong yields and 94% ROI (Surrenden Invest)

Investing in a hotel room isn’t a new concept. For decades, institutional investors have been purchasing hotel rooms around the world, leasing them back to paying guests and enjoying the lucrative income.

What is new however, is that thanks to a new breed of investment firms such as Surrenden Invest, private individuals are now also able to access the so called “beds-sector” and the market is booming.

When priced out of mainstream sectors and looking for higher yields than traditional property asset classes such as residential property, offices and retail can offer, savvy investors know that there are numerous appeals to investing in alternative property such as hotel rooms.

“Given the cyclical nature of the property sector, adding an alternative asset class to an investment portfolio provides the benefit of countering dips on the mainstream side, such as traditional buy-to-let.  The hands-off and hassle-free aspects of room ownership are highly appealing, hotel room investors can sit back and relax whilst the management team market, manage and maintain the room.”

Jonathan Stephens, MD, Surrenden Invest

Hotel rooms offer a lower entry price and lower risk profile compared to traditional property investment, along with immediate income from the date of purchase.  Buy Back-schemes, which are in place in many hotel room investments offer a guaranteed exit when the lease ends.

Overall, there is confidence in the UK hotel sector, performing well in 2017 and mirroring property investment in general; a weakened sterling, growth in staycations and improved infrastructure development all contributed to investments in built assets exceeding those of 2016.

Looking ahead to 2018 and the outlook is equally bright. CBRE’s 2018 Market Outlook expects the UK property sector to continue to perform solidly, with the beds sector, which includes hotels, weathering any uncertainty well.

“While some property sectors will see extremely patchy growth performance, the rise of Industrials & Logistics looks likely to continue and the ‘beds sectors’ such as hotels, built-to-rent and healthcare are also set to grow strongly.”

Miles Gibson, Head of UK Research at CBRE

Looking to the regions, JLL have forecast year-on-year regional hotel occupancy growth of 0.3% in 2018, whilst PwC anticipate a further 2.3% RevPAR growth for the UK regional sector in 2018 with an expected 12,000 new hotel rooms coming on stream during the year.

Another key driver which made its presence known in 2017 and will continue to do so in 2018 is inbound tourism to the UK. Visit Britain’s inbound visitor forecast for 2018 is at 41.7 million visits, an increase of 4.4% on 2017 levels and a total spend of £26.9 billion

Surrenden Invest is delighted to have partnered up with leading financial and property group, The High Street Group to deliver the benefits of hotel investment to its private clients.

The latest opportunity provided by Surrenden Invest is the Whitley Bay Hotel; an exclusive 32-bedroom hotel located in an excellent position in Whitley Bay, Tyne & Wear, just a short walk from the town centre and its award-winning Blue Flag beaches.

The hotel is just 25 minutes to Newcastle city centre by Metro, 30 minutes to Newcastle International Airport and 10 minutes from the International Cruise Terminal by car. Durham and a variety of tourist locations in Northumberland can also be reached in under 50 minutes.

The hotel offers guests an enhanced budget-boutique package, rivalling that of standard budget hotel groups such as Travelodge or Premier Inn. Guests will find rooms furnished to a higher-than-average standard with en-suite facilities and extremely comfortable beds.  A personal level of service ensures each guest receives a warm welcome and a wonderful stay thus delivering a 70% rebooking rate.

Renovated at a cost of £1.25 million in 2017 Whitley Bay Hotel has seen occupancy levels increase month on month. The average hotel occupancy rates in the North East of England is 75%, in the 3 months from July – September of last year Whitley Bay Hotel achieved an average occupancy rate of 83.8%.

Investors in the Whitley Bay hotel will receive an immediate guaranteed yield from day 1 for up to 10 years with a guaranteed Buy Back offer at 110%, backed up and securitised by the High Street Group of Companies. An investment of £70, 000 is required for an income of £59,000 net and an ROI of 94%.

Whitley Bay town itself has grown to 36,000 people and has become increasingly popular with visitors. It comes alive at weekends and bank holidays, when young and old alike enjoy the local amenities including restaurants, bars and nightlife.

A decade ago, in 2007, North Tyneside Council announced a £36 million regeneration plan for the coast at Whitley Bay.  This has included, among other projects, the regeneration the Spanish City site with its iconic dome, completed in 1912. The dome is expected to reopen summer 2018 complete with fine dining seafood restaurant, champagne and oyster bar, a tearoom, fish and chip restaurant and ice-cream parlour.

To find out more about allocated property investment please contact:

Surrenden Invest
info@surrendeninvest.com
London office: 0203 3726 499
Liverpool office: 0151 3477 459
www.surrendeninvest.com 

With 2018 now upon us, anyone thinking about investing in bricks and mortar wants to know what’s going to happen over the next 12 months. Will prices continue to edge up, stabilise or dip down? Where is best to invest? Does buy-to-let still stack up?

Jonathan Stephens, Founder and MD of expert property investment agency, Surrenden Invest, which has helped 700 clients invest in UK bricks and mortar over the past 2 years, shares his 5 predictions for the UK property market in 2018:

1. Manchester will remain robust with city centre fringe redevelopment schemes offering the best opportunities. Manchester is tipped for rapid growth over the years ahead. Its population is projected to expand by 20% by 2025, reaching 625,000 residents, according to city analysts. Such a rapid turnaround in population size is never easy for city planners to address and Manchester is estimated to be around 40,000 homes behind the number it needs, with demand continuing to put pressure on supply. Pressure on city centre land remains incredibly high thus it is to the outer fringes of the city that tenants are moving to, taking advantage of more affordable housing. With property prices significantly less than city centre sites, this is where buy-to-let investors need to be looking when it comes to Manchester.

2. Birmingham will continue to be one of the strongest buy-to-let markets in the country. Oft overlooked, the UK’s second city (by population), Birmingham, has a great deal to tempt buy-to-let investors in 2018. Birmingham’s youthful population and the huge number of graduates that the city produces every year has created an excellent environment for entrepreneurship. One part of the city in particular, Digbeth, has become a hotspot for new businesses and cultural activities, attracting large number of young professional residents. We will see Digbeth, just 10 minutes from New Street Station booming with gentrification this year and so now is the time to buy before prices soar.

3. Liverpool will continue to offer low price points and strong growth potential. 10 years on from being announced as the European Capital of Culture, the city has gone from strength to strength. Liverpool has a thriving, service-based economy, which was worth £29.5 billion in 2015 and the city is leading the UK’s Northern Powerhouse region in terms of its overall GVA growth and its growth of GVA per capita. Economic output will continue to improve with the likes of Cunard Shipping bringing a large share of their operation back to where it all began in 2018. A growing population and plenty of blossoming talent, backed by strong economic credentials and a buoyant housing market make for an ideal environment for opportunity, boosting Liverpool up the list of cities to watch most closely in the UK over the coming year.

4. London will remain slow with some prominent city centre locations seeing prices drop. Anyone who lives in London, or indeed reads the papers, will know that the capital slowed in 2017 and whilst the long-term outlook for one of the world’s top real estate markets remains optimistic, the impact of slowing prices will be felt especially if we see further interest rate increases. However undervalued pockets will continue to offer irresistible opportunities especially locations set to benefit from Crossrail due to open later this year.

5. Newcastle will be the dark horse of 2018. Newcastle and its twin city, Gateshead, has been quietly waiting in the wings, growing in population and economically, over the last couple of years. 2018 will be the north-east city’s time to shine as a higher than average economic activity rate, rising property prices and significant local investment mean that Newcastle is becoming something of a favourite with businesses and investors alike. Surrenden Invest has taken up options on several sites and predict big things for buy-to-let investors in this hidden gem.

For further details contact Surrenden Invest on 0203 3726 499 or visit www.surrendeninvest.com.