OVERSEAS INVESTORS SHOW
CONFIDENCE IN SCOTTISH PROPERTY MARKET
Smart property
investors from the Middle and Far East are taking advantage of Scotland’s static
housing market according to property investment experts in Edinburgh.
Grant
Property, operating from offices in Edinburgh and across the UK, has welcomed a
number of new clients from overseas all looking to capitalise on Scotland’s “recession
proof rental property sector.”
Peter
Grant, CEO of Edinburgh head-quartered Grant Property says: “We’ve experienced
significant growth in the investment side of our business. This is due to overseas
investors returning to the buy-to-let sector showing that their confidence in
the market has been restored. However Scots’ are not as quick to snap up great
deals on their doorstep.
“There’s no
denying that general investor confidence had been subdued due to the financial
and Euro crises. However what has remained consistent throughout is smart
investors’ bullish approach to buying to let. These people have kept their
heads despite what’s being reported on European and global markets and have
made their money as a result.
“To me and
to these smart investors who have kept their cool, residential rental property
in Scotland has remained recession proof.”
At the
beginning of the financial crisis in 2008 property prices fell by around 20 per
cent. Following the initial dip, prices rose by 10 per cent and have remained relatively
static since.
The team at
Grant Property believe that property is far more resilient and less volatile
than any other stock because there is less risk attached.
The Royal Bank of Scotland is now utilising the Bank of
England’s Funding for Lending Scheme to cut mortgage rates for people in the UK.
Details of the scheme were unveiled this month with the aim of providing banks
with up to £80bn of cheap loans for customers in the form of business loans and
mortgages.
The joint
Bank of England and Treasury initiative is designed to protect banks from
higher funding costs as a result of the Eurozone crisis, which will allow them
to lend more.
At present
– according to the Halifax House Price Index – the average house price in the
UK is £161,346 compared to a Scottish average of £113,417. This price
difference coupled by high occupancy rates in rental properties across major
cities has made Scotland an attractive target for overseas investors.
“There is
no recession in the rental market. Occupancy is at record levels, and we’re
renting properties faster than we can take them on. Rents are rising year on
year and 62 per cent of tenants expect rents to rise again in the next 12
months because there is a shortage of supply in the rental property market.
“Scots
should look to mimic the behaviour of these overseas investors and make the
most of what’s on their doorstep,” concludes Peter.
As of next
month, banks will be able to access up to 5 per cent of their existing
loan books through cheap funds, meaning that there will be more mortgage funds
available for people in Scotland and across the UK and develop their own rental
property portfolio in Scotland.
ABOUT GRANT PROPERTY
Grant
Property is an ARLA registered letting agent and specialist in helping people
invest in residential property.
The company has an unrivalled track
record in providing property management solutions to landlords based both within
the UK and overseas.
Since its
inception in 1997 founder Peter Grant, along with wife Colette have built the
company from the ground up. The duo developed the organisation based on an
ethos of stepping into the customers’ shoes and delivering a service suited to
their individual needs.
If you have found this post interesting please use the share buttons below to tell others in your online community, there's a good chance they will find it interesting too.