– Long-term returns prioritised over short-term income
– 4 out of 10 most popular listings in UK
– 9 out of 10 most popular listings under £100k
– Student housing demand still high
Lifestyle investors are becoming an increasingly important force in global property markets, according to new research. TheMoveChannel.com’s latest Investment Watch report shows that instead of purchasing for lifestyle reasons or short-term profit, a growing number of investors are combining the two.
Lifestyle investors accounted for half of TheMoveChannel.com’s 10 most popular listings in July 2015, attracting investors by offering both healthy returns and a high quality of living.
The most popular listing on the portal was Forest Lakes in Halifax, a new development where building plots are available for £50,000. The plots offer assured returns of 12 per cent per annum for three years, the highest returns of any property in the Investment Watch Top 10. Canada, though, is also a part of the appeal: cities such as Vancouver and Toronto regularly appear in the EIU’s annual rankings of most livable cities, while the capital of Nova Scotia has been ranked in the top cities for quality of life by other studies.
The ability to buy land ahead of the project’s construction is a recurring feature of popular lifestyle investments: the affordability of off-plan units boosts potential returns, with a plot in a Brazilian resort also enjoying strong demand, enough to generate the fifth biggest response in July. The early entry point also led investors to a build-to-rent opportunity in the USA, making access to America’s buy-to-let market both easier and more profitable.
Indeed, buy-to-let remains a highly sought-after sector among investors, both in the UK and further afield. Student housing is an equally in-demand method for hands-off investment, accounting for two of the Top 10 listings last month. Hotel investments in the UK and Spain also made up two entries in the Investment Watch chart, as commercial property (such as Manchester’s care home in sixth place) continues to be bolstered by improving economic conditions.
More typical of the current trend among investors, though, is Istanbul’s Diamond Residence. The property promises hands-off rental guarantees for five years of 6 per cent, but the Turkish city and the facilities on offer in the development make it just as attracive as a lifestyle purchase; it received the third highest number of enquiries. The only property in the Top 10 not to offer explicit returns was a property in London. The apartment, located in the Royal Docks, is in prime position to benefit from the ongoing construction of Crossrail, providing strong potential for capital growth in the long-term, rather than rental income in the short-term: an effective combination of lifestyle and investment.
TheMoveChannel.com Director Dan Johnson comments: “Lifestyle investors apear to be a growing force in the property industry this year, as investors increasingly choose long-term growth over short-term income. Hotel rooms offering personal usage are the tipping point of the trend, as investors begin to consider more than just the initial return on a property. Buyers seeking their dream lifestyle, meanwhile, are becoming more savvy post-recession about what they can benefit from financially. Demand for residential real estate in London and Istanbul and land plots in Canada and Brazil are this year beginning to balance out the previously dominant student property and buy- to-let sectors.”
Notes to Editors
About Lead Galaxy and TheMoveChannel.com
Founded in 1999, www.TheMoveChannel.com is the leading independent website for international property, with more than 800,000 listings in over 100 countries around the world, marketed on behalf of agents, developers and private owners.
TheMoveChannel.com is one of more than a dozen international property sites operated under the Lead Galaxy brand. Lead Galaxy provides online marketing solutions to thousands of property companies worldwide, focusing on portal listings, email marketing, qualified leads, paid search and social media advertising.
The business is headquartered at 24 Jack’s Place, Corbet Place, Shoreditch, London, E1 6NN.
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