Those looking for an investment bargain could do far worse than look to the north-east, according to property consultant King Sturge…

Matt Collis, spokesperson at the Newcastle-upon-Tyne branch, said the city is becoming a magnet for professionals looking to invest in property, not least from those based in the south who are looking for lower prices and growing markets.

He said: "A lot of people from the south are moving up here. You can be in London on the train in less than three hours. If you've got broadband and you need to be in London twice a week, why not have a great big Northumbrian country home for the price of an Islington apartment?"

Economic decline in the 1980s had set the region back, Mr Collis notes, causing unemployment and low house prices. But this, he states, is changing rapidly, offering the prospect of rapid appreciation for investors in an area where "up until recently" houses could be bought for as little as £30,000.

He said: "If you've got properties that are 30 grand, they could easily be 60 grand sometimes within a year. So there's 100 per cent [appreciation], so the rest of the country could drop 90 per cent [but] you'd still have ten per cent."

Bargain hunters moving-in

By definition, such a boom cannot go on forever as more bargain hunters move in. Moreover, Mr Collis notes, there are already established areas that have always been expensive such as Jesmond, whereas somewhere like Gateshead is less favourable.

Like elsewhere, the city centre has been a boom area: "A lot of young professionals want to be in the city centre, either [to] rent or buy. If they rent, that's fine, the investors are buying the flats and letting them to the professionals."

It's not just Newcastle either, he emphasises. Neighbouring Sunderland, with whom Newcastle shares a fierce rivalry in many areas, particularly football, is also growing. Saying the city has "picked up considerably", he added: "It's a few years behind Newcastle, although there are similarities and it's not quite as big but there's been good development there."

The development of Sunderland suggests a similar trend to that postulated for Bradford, which, it has been argued, is starting to benefit from a ripple effect from neighbouring Leeds.

Improving image

The key to the longer-term growth of the market, of course, is for the region to stand strongly on its own feet. Sandwiched between Edinburgh to the north and the boom towns of the M62 corridor to the south, some may regard that as a difficult task.

But the region has shown enough self-confidence not to opt for devolution, rejecting the proposal in the only regional referendum held in England. Moreover, the improving image of Newcastle, with its highly regarded nightlife, strong student scene and radically redeveloped Quayside, has enabled it to distance itself from the old image of coal and shipbuilding.

It may be that the region still has some way to go in its economic recovery, but in turn that may mean that those who invest in the region while prices are low will enjoy the option of long-term investment from a growing buy-to-let sector as well as the option of quicker returns.

Source: http://www.assetz.co.uk