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According to the website ‘ www.ilovemanchester.com’ Manchester property prices are predicted to rise by 112% a new study says.  This means in 2031 the average Manchester property price will be around £629,000 .  ilovemanchester.com has repoerted that the average property value in Manchester has increased from £139,783 to £296,536 over the past ten years. This means, at this rate, the average property price in Manchester in 2031 would be around £629,000. A new study by Share to Buy has revealed that Manchester is the best place to invest in a property for any homeowner – and they say it’s no wonder that Manchester property prices are soaring faster than any other city in the UK. After all, Manchester is one of the UK’s top locations to live in due to its wealth of entertainment, from shopping at the Trafford Centre to catching live music at the Manchester Arena and watching football at Old Trafford. The average UK property value has increased 10% this year alone – and some locations have increased in value more than others. Using UK government Land Registry data, the new study examines the UK locations where property values have increased the most and speculates what these property hotspots could be worth in 10 years’ time if growth continues at the current rate. The increase of 112% puts Manchester ahead of Coventry, with a 93.7% property value increase over 10 years, Birmingham, Gloucester and Milton Keynes. “First-time buyers looking to get on the property ladder may wish to do so for a combination of reasons: it’s common to not just want a comfortable home to live in, but the chance to buy in an area you love, as well as making a solid investment to ensure financial wellbeing over the long term,” says Nick Lieb from Share to Buy. “Locations where property values steeply increase are a great option for buyers looking for not only a home but an investment; however, the initial costs in these locations are often out of reach for first time buyers. “While these projections are of course based on the current rate rather than our own forecasts, many potential purchasers are already feeling priced out of the property market in popular areas – that’s why schemes like Shared Ownership and Help to Buy exist. “These government-backed products assist buyers in climbing the property ladder by lessening the upfront deposit costs. “Shared Ownership allows buyers to purchase a share of a property, while Help to Buy can help first time buyers with the assistance of an equity loan. “As a result, eligible buyers who would otherwise struggle to buy can purchase properties in sought-after locations which offer a rich lifestyle and a solid return of their initial investment when the time to sell eventually comes.” Source www.ilovemanchester.com 

Buying a property has always been all about location and choosing the right spot can be crucial in getting the best investment for your money. Manchester is now one of the UK’s top property hotspots despite the COVID-19 pandemic, all thanks to its significant role in the Northern Powerhouse and the substantial investment the city’s seen, both in the centre and throughout the suburbs. Manchester has long been one of the strongest property markets in the north, but its resilient construction sector has meant that is now a secure place to invest your money in bricks and mortar. The city is vibrant. and fast becoming a desirable place for young professionals due to its strong jobs market, extensive levels of development and in the future, its integration with HS2. The Manchester Housing Market has seen one of the busiest housing markets over the last year, with house prices rising by a massive 6% year-on-year, higher than the national average of 4.3%. Even throughout the pandemic there has been strong demand for houses in Manchester as people leave London behind in search of better value further north, and this has led to a surprising amount of activity in the housing market. This current demand for property will also be fuelled by the stamp duty holiday that allowed significant savings. As the economy begins to re-open as restrictions end, it is likely that there will be increased confidence, and those who had put moves on hold now put their property on the market. For those looking to buy in Manchester, they can expect to pay an average property price of £213,000 compared with the £320,000 average across England and Wales. A Manchester detached house could cost as much as £371,000 whilst a semi-detached property comes in at £223,000. Detached properties are seeing the sharpest rise in prices currently as wages rise and more families locate to the city. Flats in the area are worth around £172,000 and terraced properties fetch in the region of £153,000.   Traditionally, house prices in Greater Manchester have stayed well below the national average, but they are experiencing a positive upwards trend. They also sit comfortably beneath nearby Cheshire and Derbyshire, which further adds to the city’s appeal. Here at Global Investments, we have recently launched the sales of Manchester Waters, Stunning architectural development of 742 apartments across five residential towers. Conveniently located within walking distance to Manchester City Centre and Media City UK offering luxury apartments form £130,000 with 6% guaranteed return form five years. The Appeal, Manchester has a great many things going for it, but its tough construction sector has proved attractive. Despite the closure of many building sites during the lockdowns, an impressive 35 residential schemes were still completed during 2020. There are now in excess of 12,000 residential units under construction with yet more development in this area expected in the next few years. It wasn’t just residential construction that saw a boom in Manchester either, as nearly 700,000 square feet of office space was also completed last year, with another 10 schemes in the planning stages. Whilst many have now turned to working from home, Manchester has shown that there is still a strong demand for office spaces. All of this means that the jobs market in Manchester is a strong one, with many big names relocating up to the area from down south. There has also been significant growth in the tech and start-up sector, providing young people with a fresh pool of career opportunities. Whilst the Manchester property market is a fluid one, it still offers great value for money for most investors. Whether you are looking for a buy to let investment or somewhere to make your home, this city offers huge promise in terms of its job opportunities, cultural enrichment, and profitability in the properties that you can buy. This article gives credit to www.propertypressonline.co.uk and www.ManchesterEveningNews.co.uk

According to the Milwaukee Business Journal  Milwaukee is in the middle of a construction boom. Major investments in  districts, hotels, The Hop streetcar, office and residential buildings, and highways reflect the innovative vision adding to Milwaukee’s ever-changing cityscape   There are so many new developments taking place in Milwaukee it would be impossible to cover all of them in one article but here is a snippet of some of the main ones that are changing the City landscape.   New business and financial developments:   The Wisconsin Center is preparing for expansion, bringing Milwaukee’s convention center to an anticipated 480,841 sq. ft. total convention center space. BMO Harris Bank’s construction of a $137 million 25-story office building near City Hall is nearing completion. Grand Avenue Mall is being transformed into The Avenue with office and retail space including the 3rd St. Market Hall and Hub640.    Hotels:   JR Hospitality Group is creating a new hotel complex under the Holiday Inn Express brands. The Milwaukee Athletic Club, former Wisconsin Avenue School, and Humphrey Scottish Rite properties are being renovated and turned into new hotels.   The Hop:   Milwaukee’s streetcar, The Hop,  is extending to Wisconsin Avenue, creation of a plaza on the corner of Vel Phillips and Wisconsin Avenues, expansion into the adjacent Bronzeville and Walker’s Point neighborhoods, and routes to the lakefront and Fiserv Forum.   Gateway Project: A multi-million dollar project upgrading roads and park areas to improve connections between the lakefront and downtown Milwaukee.   Amphitheater:  Summerfest completed construction of the new 22,000-seat American Family Insurance Amphitheater opening during the 2020 festival season.   Revitalized Districts:   Built on the 30 acres surrounding the new Fiserv Forum arena, the Deer District is Milwaukee’s downtown sports and entertainment hub. In the new Brewery District, businesses such as Best Place at the Historic Pabst Brewery, The Captain Pabst Pilot House, The Brewhouse Inn & Suites, and NO STUDIOS have repurposed the historic Pabst Brewing buildings.   All of this development has coincided with a huge increase in property sales, a record 10,450 homes sold in the Milwaukee area during the first half of the year, housing sales were up 15.3% for the first six months as compared to last year.    GMAR President Mike Ruzicka stated that the systemic problem with the market is the lack of new construction of single-family houses and condominiums. The number of homes listed for sale in the region is up. But the inventory of available listings is at about 3 months. A balanced market has about six months of inventory. If the City does not create additional supply in the form of more single-family homes thousands of would-be homeowners will be forced into rental units.   Throughout the last two decades, the city has begun to make strides in revitalizing its neighborhoods around Downtown that used to house Milwaukee’s economic engines. Areas like the Third Ward and Menomonee Valley have converted former warehouses and factory buildings into office and residential mixed-use buildings, while incorporating new entertainment venues like the 381-room Potawatomi Hotel & Casino. The surge in activity has created a domino effect on Downtown and has made it an ever popular place to live, work and play.      It’s an exciting time in the city and this new growth promises even better things to come over the next five years, It doesn’t matter how you measure it  Downtown Milwaukee is booming.   If you would like more information on our Milwaukee properties please email invest@globalinvestmentsincorporated.com

This month we are looking at what’s happening in the UK Property market. Savills are predicting in a recent report more growth to come in 2021 and a soft landing in 2022 with UK mainstream house price growth forecast +9% in 2021. The average UK house price has continued to rise strongly in 2021, increasing by +5.6% in the first six months of the year according to the Nationwide index. The signs are the market looks set to maintain growth for the second half of the year meaning Savills expect annual house price growth across the UK as a whole to end 2021 at 9%, and with transactions to exceed 1.6m for the first time since the credit crunch Savills also expect transaction levels to diminish gradually over the remainder of this year as government support for both the housing market and the wider economy is withdrawn. However, the pace at which sales continue to be agreed suggests that national transaction levels will still end the year at circa 1.62m. That is roughly 35% higher than the average for the five years prior to the pandemic, despite an acknowledged shortfall of available supply to meet demand. A soft landing seems likely. The pace of economic recovery means unemployment levels have been contained and are forecast to progressively return to pre-pandemic levels and Interest rate rises are still expected to be gradual and modest, meaning a progressive squeeze on affordability. Together, Savills believe, this means there does not appear to be a trigger for a major house price correction. Ultimately, the pattern of growth over the period 2022–2025 depends on the extent to which the market normalises and what this means for price growth next year. While at this point, we are forecasting price growth of 3.5% next year, we could still see some of the growth generated by the extraordinary market conditions of 2020 and 2021 unwind at times during 2022. Regionally we continue to expect the markets of the Midlands and the North of England to show the strongest price growth as has occurred historically at this point in the housing market cycle, due to greater capacity for growth before hitting affordability ceilings. However, in the short term, we do expect some of the buyer focus to shift back towards urban markets, including London, as social distancing restrictions and international travel restrictions ease. This will see the ratios of regional to UK average values slowly converge over the next five years, as the lower value regions see stronger growth, ‘catching up’ with the rest of the country. This is what we’d consider typical late cycle behaviour. At the end of the day house prices and yields, have traditionally increase over time in England, with a stable economy and government. The World looks to invest here, and this will likely continue. Global Investments offer several ‘off plan’ and ready property investments in the Midlands and the North of England including apartments in Liverpool, Manchester, and Birmingham, some with guaranteed returns. Also on offer are Freehold Houses in the Northeast, refurbished and offered to market with tenants in situ. If you are interested in investing in UK Property and would like to know more, please contact us. Source: Savills Research using Land Registry and Nationwide

Global Investments have recently started to offer the latest property investment offering in Preston, ‘The Exchange’ an exciting new development situated in the City Centre. Developed by The Heaton Group who have been developing for 45 years through 5 generations of The Heaton Family, The Exchange property investment comprising 200 stylish apartments offers a new standard of premium modern living to the local rental market. The development is Fully funded by HS Credit which is a subsidiary of a large international funding group called Hap Seng (market cap £4.5bn) Last year rents in Preston rose by 4% almost double the national average. Preston is flying, just check out some of these figures! Surely now is the time to be part of this continuing success story? The ‘Tempest programme’ of developing a future Combat Air system brings together UK Ministry of defence, BAE systems, Rolls Royce and MBDA UK is expected to generate at least £7.9bn GVA. The programme will support on average 5,000 highly skilled jobs per year directly employed on the programme and in the first tier of the supply chain. Providing productivity 31% higher than the Northwest manufacturing average. High Speed Two (HS2) is coming, the Government’s planned new high-speed railway, which will connect the North of England and Scotland with the Midlands and London. High Speed Two Limited (HS2 Ltd) is the company responsible for developing and promoting the new rail network. In July 2017, the Government confirmed the route for the next phase of HS2, known as Phase 2b, including a ‘western leg’ section running north from Crewe to Manchester and connecting to the West Coast Main Line near Wigan. HS2 Ltd has been developing designs to include changes to existing stations, including Preston, that will need to be made so that services can run along the West Coast Main Line to and from Scotland. Phase 1 target completion is 2026 (1 year of testing included) and Phase 2 target completion ranges from 2027 to 2033 (including 1 year of testing). At Preston the extension of the station will be complete in 2028 and open in 2029. It is expected four HS2 trains an hour will serve Preston station when Phase 2b is completed. Changes at the station will be made to accommodate the trains which will be up to 400 metres long. Two platforms will be extended and a new platform on the western side of the station will be built. The benefits of high-speed rail will be felt in Preston before this work starts, as new services will be introduced when trains start running on Phases One and 2a of HS2 between London, Birmingham, and Crewe. When these first phases open, services will run south from Preston on the existing railway to Crewe before joining the new high-speed railway to London and Birmingham. The Preston City Centre development ‘The Exchange’ due to complete in 2023 will offer to its residents an onsite Gym, Concierge, residents lounge and roof garden. With prices starting for apartments from around £131,000 for a one bedroom, £216,000 for a two bedroom and £234,000 for a three bedroom ‘The Exchange’ is very competitively priced with rental returns of 6% net. If you would like to consider adding ‘The Exchange’ Preston City centre to your property portfolio, contact us at Global investments to explore the options available. For further details on The Exchange and other UK property Investments please contact Ian Pask at ian@globalinvestmentsincorporated.com

Owning a buy-to-let property is not just about yields; understanding the potential for capital growth is also a key part of any property investment strategy. So, what do the experts say about property prices and rental values in the UK? Where are they heading over the coming years and which regions are going to be the stars of the show? The most recent projections were released in March 2021, with Savills commenting: “2021 will be a complex year, with competing forces having different impacts on the housing market over the course of the year. But government support, the easing of social distancing restrictions, and low interest rates underpin our forecast for 4.0% price growth.” That 4.0% growth sets the tone for the years to come, with Savills projecting it will increase to 5.0% in 2022. Overall, in the five years to 2025, the company forecasts mainstream capital value growth of 21.1% for the UK. The North West tops the table, again at a regional level, that growth will vary significantly over the years ahead. The third most populous region in the UK and home to cities including Manchester and Liverpool the North West is forecast to see growth of 28.8% between now and 2025. The North Easts projects are also at a good level estimated at 20.5% over the same five-year period. Speaking of yields Savills has also included mainstream rental values in its latest five-year forecast. While UK rents are forecast to rise by just 0.8% in 2021, the pace picks up significantly in 2022, when a rise of 4.5% is anticipated. So, what has happened so far in 2021?  We are already a quarter of the way through 2021. That means that figures are available to show how the UK property market has been performing so far this year. Nationwide’s latest figures show annual house price growth of 5.7% in the year to March 2021. Again, we see the North West leading the pack, with price growth of 8.2% over the same period. Regional variations in house price growth show the value of doing your homework and identifying the best UK region to focus on as part of your investment strategy. All indicators are undoubtedly pointing to the North of England right now. Looking at the longer-term picture, Savills projects that rents across the UK will increase by an average of 17.0% in the five years to 2025. Here at Global Investments (www.globalinvestmentsincorporated.com)  we have seen many investors have been opting for buy-to-let properties in the North East and West of England for some time as the area has established credentials in terms of its property market performance and wider economic backdrop. A centre for industry and dynamic growth, the North of England has plenty to offer investors looking for good value, strong capital growth and solid yields. If you would like to discuss the different property investment options available, get in touch. Source:  Savills UK | Residential Market Forecasts    House Price Index Headlines | Nationwide

It is a know fact that the best valued properties in the UK are in the North of England but the north-east leads the way in terms of value and return. This is due to a mix of low property prices, high rental yields and good prospects for rising property prices in the future. If you look at the UK House Price Index, the north-east of England is by far the cheapest location to buy a house , the average price for a house is just £125,650 as compared to the national average house price across England being £251,233. In the north-east you can find brick terraced houses for as little as £49,900 and some of these come with tenants in place, there is a great opportunity for investors to enter the UK’s buy-to-let market at a low entry point with consistent and healthy returns. While the average national return on rental properties is just 4.2%, the North East property often delivers more favourable returns of up to 10%. The north-east region is made up of Tyne and Wear, Teesside, County Durham and Northumberland, it has a population of around 2.6 million.The biggest city in the North East is Newcastle but there are other great investments areas like Sunderland, Durham, Bishop Auckland, North Shields, Hartlepool, Hexham, Darlington, Chester le Street, Stockton-on-Tees, Jarrow and Morpeth. The economy in the north is starting to see an upturn in recent years, the economic gap with other parts of the country is closing.  According to the recent Government statistics, the North East of England has one of the fast growing economies in all of the UK, estimated to be worth £35.5bn. We have seen the opening of many great new manufacturing plants in the north-east, examples of these are Nissan in Sunderland and Hitachi in Durham. The Sunderland Nissan factory is Nissan’s biggest car plant globally and ranked among the world’s top five leading car-makers. The north-east is a very popular student location, Newcastle has the largest student population in the north-east and has been named as the UK’s ‘Best University City’ for the past three years running by MSN .You also have Sunderland, Durham and Middlesbrough where there are also great universities. There will always be a demand for accommodation in university towns and cities, houses in the right locations are highly sought after. Newcastle was recently voted as the best city for quality of life and also the UK’s happiest city.  Durham has its famous University with a thriving commercial sector alongside it. Sunderland and Middlesbrough have been voted numbers 1 and 2 respectively as the best places to invest in student property. The north-east is competing to become the UK’s main digital hub, there has been huge investments in recent years, the North East is home to IT companies like Sage, Hewlett-Packard and ZeroLight who all contribute to the regions digital and IT sector, this sector is estimated to be worth around £1.1bn to the economy. But it is not just the Digital Hub or Universities that are tempting companies away from the South, there is no doubt that commercial office space has played a major part. Commercial office space in the North East is approximately 30% cheaper than in other cities around the UK and is almost 68% cheaper than in London. Even-though property prices are low as compared to other parts of the UK all of the above factors mean there is a strong demand for property to rent. The influx of students and corporate employees are pushing a strong rental market. One recent study done shows that tenant demand in the north-east experienced the highest increase of any UK region in 2017. Another recent report from The Telegraph says the north-east England offers some of the best prospects for buy to let investors. Now is the time to invest in property in the North East of England, with offices in Newcastle and Manchester our team of property specialists have expert, in-depth knowledge of the best buy-to-let opportunities in North East of England. If you would like more information about these UK buy to let opportunities please email Mike or any of the team at Global at invest@globalinvestmentsincorporated.com