The latest CBRE report reveals why Manchester’s various property markets are set for some of the most growth across the UK. CBRE examined the prospects of the 50 largest regional towns and cities, analysing a range of economic and demographic factors that support growth across the different types of property sectors.
Demographic trends and property market data, like the supply pipeline, housing affordability and local universities, were also considered. All sectors of the property market were assessed, and this included office, retail and student accommodation, in addition to single-family and multi-family housing.
Jennet Siebrits, head of UK research at CBRE, said: “The way towns and cities grow and evolve is very much reflective of their local geographies, natural resources, and cultural history.
“As a result, no two cities in the UK are the same, and subsequently, different real estate sectors thrive in different locations. Real estate professionals need to be cognizant of these differences to help inform their strategies.”
Office
Manchester has been named the top city for future growth in the office property market space. This was based on demand metrics like GDP, access to highly-skilled workers, working age population and the forecast for office-based employment. All of these areas often impact demand for offices and workspace.
The cities and towns in the UK that are best placed for opportunity in this space, including Manchester, are forecast to benefit from expansion rooted in demographic and economic growth. The Northern Powerhouse city has a diverse economy that provides a wide scope of employment prospects, which also has an impact on other property sectors as well.
CRBE commented: “Manchester and Bristol feature top in our rankings, partly because they are expected to benefit from the strongest GDP growth… Manchester, Bristol and Birmingham have the highest forecast growth in office-based employment.”
Retail and Leisure
The exciting city of Manchester also came in third for future growth in the retail space and fifth in the leisure, food and beverage property sectors. These are important parts of the city’s property space.
Larger regional cities like Manchester are showing no signs of diminishing in terms of attractiveness in these sectors and appear in the top 10 for current consumer spending power and employment.
These sorts of markets can help make the city even more liveable with such a wide range of shopping, food, drink and leisure on offer for residents.
Residential
With a thriving residential property market, Manchester came first with the highest growth prospects over the next 10 years in student accommodation, multi-family housing and single-family housing sectors.
Manchester already has a large proportion of households (29%) in the private rented sector. This will be further boosted by its forecast for significant population growth across the next decade.
And with the strong current and future fundamentals in the residential property market, there is already a large existing pipeline of new homes as a proportion of existing homes.
Multi-family housing
Professional management, high-quality accommodation and amenity provision have been a major driver of demand in the multi-family housing market.
High levels of city centre population growth and relative rental affordability are crucial determinants of which cities see the highest growth potential in this sector. And Manchester’s strong economic and rental fundamentals make it take the top spot.
Single family housing
Single family housing growth predictions were based on forecasts for rental affordability, family population and once again economic growth. As the average age of the private-rented household in the UK has been steadily rising across the past 10 years, this has been boosting demand for family-friendly rental housing.
Manchester ranks first in employment and GDP growth over the next decade, which also impacts this sector and the whole residential housing market. So, the future continues to look bright for this growing city in the North West.
A growing number of developments being brought forward all over Manchester are helping meet the ever-growing demand for housing across the city and many are even setting high standards for modern city living.
At Salboy, we have a range of new-builds and off-plan properties across the exciting and growing city of Manchester. If you’re interested in buying or investing here, please contact our team of local expert advisors!
