The latest property market predictions from Savills have backed up earlier forecasts that the north-west of England will outperform the rest of the country over the next five years.
A new report published by Savills looking at the latest property market performance has painted a relatively subdued picture of the sector over the past month, although house price growth is still in line with the real estate firm’s predictions earlier this year of a 1% uptick over 2018.
The five-year forecast outlines a 14.2% average rise in the UK’s property prices between 2018 and 2022, with the pace expected to pick up after this year to a 2.5% increase in 2019, a 5% increase in 2020, and then back to 2.5% growth for both 2021 and 2022.
North-west still ahead of the pack
However, while London holds the overall growth expectations back with just a 7.1% property price rise predicted over the next five years – the lowest in the country – the north-west remains at the helm with a huge 18.1% boom expected to take place by 2022, with the biggest upsurge predicted in 2020 of an average 6%.
Other above-average performances are expected to be seen in the north-east and Yorkshire and the Humber (each at 17.6% growth over five years), Scotland with 17%, Wales with 15.9%, and both the East and West Midlands with 14.8% growth.
A slow but stable market
The latest Savills survey also looks at transaction volumes across the country, using data from HM Land Registry and Registers of Scotland. It reports that while there has been a decline throughout the UK in recent months, the falls are “particularly pronounced in areas of low affordability, such as London and the south”.
The report adds: “All regions have seen a fall in activity, with London at 27% fewer transactions in June than the same month last year. Scotland has performed the best, with only 6% fewer transactions in June compared to the previous year.”
In terms of rental growth, there was a very small decline in the year to June of 0.9%, according to figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS), with the East Midlands performing the most strongly with a 2.7% rise over the year, while London rents had fallen by an average of 0.3%. For buy-to-let investors seeking the best returns, it seems the capital is no longer providing the results it was once most known for and more landlords are opting to branch out into other areas to grow their profits.
