The future potential of the Northern Powerhouse has been highlighted as a global property investment hotspot for property investors.
Property investment firm IP Global has carried out research by analysing the world's leading property investment markets and three cities in the UK top of their investment league table.
The firm says that for landlords wanting the best return on investment, as revealed in their quarterly Real Estate Outlook report, then Manchester, Leeds and Liverpool top the list with Newcastle also showing signs of developing quickly.
They say that Manchester takes the top spot thanks to the fast growth in house prices and rents there are set to grow by 16.5% by 2022.
Manchester landlords are also enjoying yields of 5.6% gross thanks to an expanding working population and healthy student numbers.
Liverpool is enjoying the fastest economic growth in the UK
For landlords in Liverpool, there is the fastest economic growth in the UK and offers a high performing investment location for property. Yields there average 6.2% and rents are set to grow by 17.6% by 2021.
Outside of London, Leeds has the UK's largest economy and is proving to be popular with international investors.
The firm says that industry is creating yearly job growth of 6% and rents will rise by 18.8% by 2021. There's also likely to be a big supply in rental homes and the city has ‘a strong future'.
Newcastle has also been highlighted with a thriving digital sector with the rental market growing by 6% in the last 13 years and with growing demand IP Global says Newcastle will join their list as one of the world’s property investment hotspots.
Treasury should 'encourage and support' landlords
Meanwhile, the Residential Landlords’ Association (RLA) says the Treasury could help to solve the UK's housing crisis by using tax rules to support buy to let landlords.
They say this move will help investors provide much needed rental homes to meet demand.
The call comes after several reports apparently suggest that growing numbers of BTL landlords are looking to leave the private rental sector or reduce the number of properties they hold.
David Smith, the RLA's policy director, said: “It's time that the Treasury thought more creatively and used tax to encourage and support landlords who are prepared to invest in new rental homes that we desperately need. Without this change we will be talking about the housing crisis for years.”
Among the ideas being proposed by the RLA is to use tax, including capital gains, to encourage landlords to sell their property to their sitting tenant.
They say that this could be the basis of a new rental model with landlords being encouraged to invest in a new property to rent and then selling it to the tenant and then for the landlord to repeat the property buying process.
