4 for the price of 1! 4 luxury northern apartments for the price of 1 average London home
- Home sales growing fastest in north and north west England (LSL)
- Manchester ranked 17th out of all of Europe’s cities by LaSalle
- Award-winning residential property available in Liverpool from £109,950 (Surrenden Invest)
Property investors are increasingly heading north, as England’s north-south divide becomes more starkly apparent. Recently released data from LSL Property Services shows that, across the UK, September has been the best month for home sales since 2007. It is the northern regions that are experiencing the fastest growth: in the three months to August 2015, the largest year-on-year increase in property sales was found to be in the north and north west of England.
Manchester’s property is particularly attractive right now, with the city generating huge interest thanks to its position at the heart of the Northern Powerhouse initiative. Structural change in Manchester is sufficient to have positioned the city 17th out of the whole of Europe in LaSalle’s 2015 European Regional Economic Growth Index.
Jonathan Stephens, Managing Director of Surrenden Invest, a London-based property consultancy specialising in high yielding buy-to-let investments, explains more,
“Experience has taught us that investors like the prestige of working with a property company based in London, but when it comes to where they invest, the northern half of England is definitely attracting the greatest amount of interest. The lower property prices and the huge demand projected in cities like Manchester and Liverpool over the next decade are simply more attractive than a lot of opportunities in the south of the country right now.”
Surrenden Invest has been involved in the Manchester property market for some time, having been quick to identify the city’s potential as a cornerstone of the UK’s buy-to-let boom. The bespoke luxury apartments of X1 Plaza @ Eastbank, located in Manchester’s city centre and available for £120,000 to £180,000, offer an assured 6% net return. Perfectly situated for young professionals, the apartments provide stylish homes in a high demand growth area – just what investors are looking to the north to find.
Following this ‘north is best’ trend, Liverpool is also highlighted in the LaSalle European Regional Economic Growth Index, taking 68th position as one of a handful of UK regional cities showing “consistent and robust scores.” These cities are noted for their strong employment scores, when compared with their German and Dutch counterparts.
A thriving city with a strong cultural offering, Liverpool has undergone numerous regeneration projects over the past decade, pushing forward a modern agenda when it comes to contemporary city living. The Kings Dock and Lime Street areas have been included in a recent £1.5 billion regeneration scheme, while the latest plans for the £290 million regeneration of Anfield are due to go on show this month.
When it comes to residential investment, it’s all about the city centre, with young professionals crying out for new, high spec homes that are conveniently located both for work and for the myriad entertainment and leisure options that Liverpool city centre offers. Specialists in spotting a high yield opportunity, Surrenden Invest is answering demand with The Terrace at the Quarter. The award-winning city centre development is just five minutes from Albert Dock. Prices range from £109,950 to £199,950, with 6% per annum assured for three years, and completion is due by Q4 2016.
Such developments sum up perfectly why the north-south divide is increasingly stark when it comes to buy-to-let property investment. Being able to buy a desirable city centre home at an affordable price, in a location where demand is intense, is highly appealing to property investors. With an average property price of £493,026 in London (Land Registry, August 2015), investors in the north can buy as many as four brand new, luxury apartments for the same price as one average London pad and still have change left over. And with figures like that, it seems likely that the north-south divide in England’s property market is going to remain in place for a long time to come.
For further details, visit www.surrendeninvest.com, email info@surrendeninvest.com or call 0203 3726 499.