Manchester is home to one of the UK’s most important regional economies outside London, and has become one of the UK’s premier property investment destinations in the last few years. Now that the UK has voted to leave the EU, with considerable and uncertain economic consequences, many investors are wondering what the future holds for the market in light of the referendum result.
While uncertainty is perhaps the defining feature of the referendum’s economic aftermath throughout the UK, there is a fair amount of consistency in such predictions as Manchester’s property experts do feel able to make. Most agree, on the whole, that the referendum result is undeniably bad news for the Manchester property market, but not bad enough to take away its status as one of the UK’s most attractive investment destinations.
Perhaps the most immediate prediction that the city’s property experts are making is that there will be a period of significant uncertainty, and this will unavoidably have an impact on the market. Activity will slow as investors and developers try to work out what is going on and formulate a new plan for how the market should best proceed. Until this plan is formed, price growth will be restrained by the slowing of activity. This will not be great for those who already own properties in the city but may give those who are considering the purchase of new Manchester property assets more opportunity to get in before price inflation has happened rather than after.
Once the market has found its feet in the new economy and worked out a way forward, many experts believe that the future of the Manchester property market will be rather more akin to the bright future that was widely predicted before the referendum. One of the key reasons the Manchester property market has been such an attractive one lately is the city’s position at the forefront of the Northern Powerhouse initiative. This programme of development, investment, and improvement in the North of England is still set to drive the status of Manchester forward, and indeed puts the city in a strong position to perform ahead of the rest of the UK.
Many other key factors that have contributed to Manchester’s rise to greater prominence as a property investment destination also continue to hold true regardless of the referendum result. These include an existing supply/demand imbalance, predictions for strong population growth, and a steady stream of talented graduates entering the workforce from the city’s universities.
Ultimately, predictions are always speculative and Brexit, in particular, has created a situation where nobody really knows what is going to happen. Nonetheless, many figures within the city and the wider investment world are in agreement that Manchester is in a better position than most other UK markets, and that property remains a sound choice of investment for the economic road ahead.
Author Bio
Hopwood House are experts in UK property investment, with a wide range of properties for sale in Manchester, Liverpool, Birmingham and London.
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Daniel Peacock