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Narrowing of north-south property divide

23rd February 2006 | back to article listings BACK    print this article PRINT

Prospects for property investment are currently much more evenly distributed across the UK, with new data pointing to a narrowing of the north-south wealth gap.

Back in the year 2000, the south of England accounted for as much as 60 per cent of the UK's housing wealth but last year this had fallen to 55 per cent. As the gap closes, investors are finding they can just as comfortably throw their money at property projects in the north as the south, with a couple of places in the north-west of England particularly lucrative.

Redevelopment projects in Manchester and Liverpool have made both cities especially appealing to many property investors looking for capital appreciation, while good rental yields also make buy-to-let investments attractive.

According to statistics from the Halifax Annual Review of the Value of Housing Stock, Eden in the north-west has seen astonishing growth of 169 per cent in the last five years, while Easington and Derwentside have seen values rising by 160 per cent and 156 per cent respectively.

Carlisle also performed well with a 148 per cent rise in private housing stock value, aided by the proximity of the Lake District.

Investors have been alerted to the fact that the north of England in general has seen the greatest rise in the value of its housing stock during the last five years, with a 139 per cent increase from £47 billion to £113 billion.

Helped by these impressive figures from the north and north-west, the value of the UK's private housing stock has in fact trebled over the last ten years to £3.4 trillion.

Furthermore, while there has been just a 12 per cent rise in consumer prices in the last five years, housing stock has soared by 73 per cent.

It is Westminster, however, that possesses the country's most valuable housing stock, with £40 billion last year. To put this into context, Westminster covers an area of only 22 kilometres, while Birmingham, just behind in terms of housing stock value, covers 265 kilometres.

Property investors cannot ignore the fact that London's total housing stock is now valued at £548 billion. This is higher than the combined stock of Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland and the north of England and so property investment in the capital remains a draw for many.

On the other hand, during the last five years, the value of stock in London climbed by just 53 per cent, which puts it at the bottom of the table in terms of capital gains.

This is a press release by Assetz also available at http://press.assetz.co.uk/articles/2517.html. Alternatively, please see our full press release archive.

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