Fabrik Invest reveals property investors’ top concerns as they navigate Covid and Brexit
- Post-pandemic market projections occupying investors’ minds
- Big wins for tertiary cities already beginning to play out
- Local migration patterns and employment fluctuations being carefully monitored
Property investment agency Fabrik Invest has shared insights into the top concerns that property investors are expressing as they navigate the dual complexities of the pandemic and Brexit. The company works with investors from more than 20 countries and has been monitoring their top property-related concerns for the past year.
“The impact of the pandemic on the UK property market is, naturally, top of investors’ minds right now. They are even more keen than usual to see the latest data on price movements both nationally and locally. There’s also a lot of interest in what’s next for the market – what’s the landscape going to look like in the future, post-Brexit and post-Covid?”
Dale Anderson, Managing Director, Fabrik Invest
The stamp duty holiday – now extended to the end of June – has done much to not just keep the property market moving over the past year but to accelerate transactions significantly. Prices have risen as a result, with Nationwide’s February house price index showing annual growth of 6.9%.
Of course, the question on property investors’ minds is whether or not a crash is on the cards. Yet key industry analysts think not. Savills is projecting 4% growth in prices in 2021, followed by 5% in 2022. In fact, in the five years to 2025, the firm is anticipating price growth to total 21.1% across the UK, led by growth of 28.8% in the North West. The figures reflect the measures in the spring Budget, including the introduction of a government guarantee on 95% loan-to-value mortgages. The scheme is set to provide further stimulus for the housing market.
The fact that the Office for Budgetary Responsibility now expects, “a return to pre-Covid levels by the middle of next year, six months earlier than first thought,” according to Chancellor Rishi Sunak, is further good news for investors’ looking at the UK property market’s potential for growing their capital.
Quantitative easing and the recently announced Corporation Tax hikes will also play into the UK’s overall economic picture over the coming months and years, as will migration patterns driven by the pandemic and by local fluctuations in employment levels.
“I expect a short-term dip in prices in certain parts of the country – specifically the prime London and Manchester city centre markets. We’re likely to see homeowners and investors looking for better value outside of these areas instead. Third tier cities should make for the most attractive prospects.”
Dale Anderson, Managing Director, Fabrik Invest
Preston, in Lancashire, is one such example. With a rapidly growing population and £434 million worth of investment schemes underway, plus a further £19.9 million from the Towns Fund announced in the spring Budget, the city has plenty going for it.
The fact that Bishopgate Gardens, a 130-home residential scheme in Preston, is seeing a surge in interest right now speaks to the appeal of tertiary cities in property investors’ eyes. With shared social spaces including a stylish lounge area, a coffee pod café, show-stopping rooftop gardens and a shared working space, plus seven ground-floor retail units, the development offers a lifestyle experience designed to level up choices for Preston’s renters – and for its investors.
“What we’ve also heard over the past year is investors’ need for significant reassurance over the online nature of their transactions. This has been a direct result of the pandemic. Investors want to know how they can be sure they’re making the right decisions when everything is done virtually.”
Dale Anderson, Managing Director, Fabrik Invest
Fabrik Invest has fared well in this respect. The firm’s knowledge-based approach has seen it partner with leading financial and mortgage advisors as it works to provide investors with an honest approach to their investment options. That means not only providing deeply researched information on each investment location, but also being upfront about the risks associated with off-plan investment. The company’s consultants, all of whom have a minimum of a decade’s experience in the sector, host personal strategy meetings online, working to understand each investor’s goals at an individual level.
It’s an approach that clients have found reassuring in the face of the adversity created by the pandemic – and by Brexit too. It means that, while the market is changing in terms of localised demand, property investors are still keen to be a part of the UK’s economic future. They’re just keen to know which cities will provide the best returns and the best potential for capital growth – so while the questions at the top of their minds have changed, their fundamental needs remain the same.
For more information, please contact Fabrik Invest on 020 8175 9891 or enquiries@fabrikinvest.com, or visit www.fabrikinvest.com