Manchester has overtaken London as the number one location targeted by buy-to-let investors.

Data from The Property Buying Company from 295 investors reveals just under a quarter – at 23% – are searching property in Manchester, outpacing the 18% who set their preferences for the Capital.

The top five most in-demand cities for investors are Manchester at 23%, London at 18%, Liverpool at 8%, Birmingham at 7% along with Luton and Nottingham at 3%.

Average rents

While average rents in Manchester have risen by 3% in the past year to £1,349 a month, slightly below the British average increase of 3.4%, the city continues to offer gross rental yields of 6.6%, compared to 5.1% in London.

The Property Buying Company goes on to reveal that the North West remains the most sought-after region in England and Wales, with 18% stating it as their preferred region for investment.

Lagging behind

Last week, it was revealed Manchester tops the league table of cities with the fastest house price growth in the past 10 years with London lagging well behind.

Prices were up 63%, while in the Capital they had risen only 7% during the same period.

The analysis by Rightmove also showed the four fastest growing local areas were all suburbs in Greater Manchester.

Manchester has established itself as one of the UK’s most attractive investment opportunities.”

Karl McArdle, Co-Founder of The Property Buying Company, says: “Despite not promising the highest rental yield, Manchester has established itself as one of the UK’s most attractive investment opportunities.

“Our data shows that demand for property in Manchester is nearly three times higher than in Liverpool and more than three times higher than in Birmingham”.

He went on to say: “The city ticks a lot of boxes for investors, with a growing population, high rental demand, ongoing regeneration projects, several universities and major employers”.

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