Landlords back urban flats as workers return to office working

Over a quarter of UK landlords agree that flats in the city are better investments over rural accommodation and would continue to be so in 12 months.

A high rise residential development in an unnamed UK City.

UK landlords are doubling down on urban flats as prospective buyers revert to city living amidst the return to office working, latest research from Shawbrook Bank reveals.

Over a quarter of UK landlords (28%) agreed that flats in cities were the best investment over the last 12months and a similar amount (26%) believed that they would continue to be so in the next 12 months.

OFFICE SETTING

Latest data from recruitment giant Hays shows that for the first time since the Covid-19 pandemic more people are working fully in office than hybrid with fewer than two in five (39%) now working in a hybrid way, whereas almost half (43%) work solely in an office setting.

Other notable investment opportunities for landlords included semi-detached properties in cities (21%) as well as student accommodation (18%).

More widely, the number of landlords that agreed that flats in cities were the best investment is even higher in areas such as London (30%), Scotland (39%) and Wales (28%).

Emma Cox, Managing Director of Real Estate at Shawbrook Bank, says: “The end of ‘the flight to the countryside’ and resurgence of city living post-pandemic has not gone over landlords’ heads as investment in urban properties has gained strong momentum.”

TURBULENT

And she adds: “Whilst the property market still remains turbulent, with high interest rates and inflation impacting buyers, landlords are adapting their strategies to diversify and stay on par with changing trends.

Emma Cox, Shawbrook Bank
Emma Cox, Shawbrook Bank

“Now may also be the right time for professional landlords to partner with a specialist lender, to maximise opportunities available and future-proof businesses against any further market challenges.”

Elsewhere, a nationwide report from mortgage lender Together finds more than a third (34%) of buy-to-let landlords are gearing up for further expansion in next 12 months, shrugging off tough market cautiousness.

Just one in 10 admitted their reservations about the outlook of their business ahead of 2024 with seven out of 10 (68%) feeling optimistic and a quarter planning to refinance their properties to support business objectives over the next year.


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