No matter what is happening in the rest of the world, interest in the UK housing market remains strong with many people looking to buy a property as part of their investment portfolio or as a future home.
Expats and foreign nationals particularly in the UAE and GCC are using the weak pound to snap up UK properties while prices remain affordable outside London and the South East.
According to a new research by Liquid Expat Mortgages, there has been a 20% increase in foreign nationals and expats within the UAE investing in UK property year on year.
With these foreign buyers investing in buy-to-lets, first homes and second homes, roughly 60% opted for properties in Manchester in 2017, while 25% chose Birmingham. London, however, has seen the number of buyers from this region dwindle by 60% – a result of high property prices and poor rental yields, according to the study.
With a rise in the number of working expats and foreign nationals investing in the UK, there has also been an increase in the number of mortgages catering towards them, with some mortgages offering interest rates as low as 2.74%. This is considerably cheaper compared with the average mortgage interest rates in the UAE of around 4.25% for Dubai property.
Given the wide choice of mortgages on offer, expats and foreign nationals are choosing to buy property in the cities and towns of the so-called ‘Northern Powerhouse’.
With rental yields of 7.08% in Salford, 5.96% in Leeds and 5.79% in Manchester, areas within the Northern Powerhouse currently offer the best investment opportunities in the buy-to-let market. In fact, Manchester currently sits in the Top 10 buy-to-let postcodes in the UK, with rental price growth of 7.53% and yields of 6.11%, according to LendInvest.
Speaking on property investment in the UK, Matthew Jay, managing partner at Alliance Investments, said: “Despite the uncertainty that surrounds Brexit, the UK still continues to attract property investors from the UAE because of its stability, robust economy, transparent legal and regulatory environment and booming population. Balance these factors against the country’s endemic shortfall of new homes, and it’s little surprise that prices continue to track upwards at a steady rate”
Ronald Garrett, director of sales at Alliance Investments, added: “Now would be the best time to buy property in the UK with the average house price fallen compared with a decade ago and interest rates are at an all-time low despite the recent rate rises”
Alliance Investments, a subsidiary of 27 year Alliance Group has a wide spectrum of property developments ranging from luxury apartments to student accommodation units that serve as the perfect investment opportunity and early retirement plan for UAE expats, UK property investors and foreign nationals.
For more details on upcoming projects and property developments in the UK, please click here.
