[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]Two months ago, Birmingham basked in the global spotlight of the 2022 Commonwealth Games. The largest multi-sport event to be held in England in 10 years, it was beamed live to 134 countries. More than 5 million people arrived into the city centre during the 2-week period—a 200% increase on the same period in 2021, and a massive benefit to the local economy.
The Games happened at a good time: normalcy was returning post-Covid as regeneration schemes progressed through the city and more international employers relocated to Birmingham.
Buoyed by positive momentum, the City of A Thousand Trades is experiencing growing tenant demand and promising growth forecasts ahead. Read on to learn more about the outlook for Birmingham over the next few years.
[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]Investors with their fingers on the pulse understand that the best cities to invest in are built upon regeneration and urban renewal.
Europe’s fastest-growing tech city and most popular property investment destination—Manchester—has been nothing short of spectacular. This Northern city has built a reputation for creating more than its fair share of world firsts, including the first IVF baby, first splitatom and graphene isolation, and where the first stored programme computer was built.
Manchester’s growth from a market town of some 10,000 people, and its rise from industrial decline to the heaving, bustling metropolis that it is today, was founded on the back of regeneration and urban renewal. Some of Europe’s most successful regenerations took place here.
[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]It’s a little known fact, especially among foreigners, that Manchester, and not London, is the UK’s Most Liveable City—a common oversight, as London’s fame as a global financial and cultural hub often overshadows the Northern city.
Still, Manchester has been the UK’s rising star in liveability, affordability and overall quality of life for a decade now, overtaking London, Birmingham and Liverpool to claim the UK’s top spot in The Economist’s ‘Global Liveability Index since 2011.
Read on to know what to look out for when investing in property for steady capital growth.
[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]Looks like there will be a new face for Old Trafford. A masterplan to regenerate and revitalise the surrounding area has been submitted for formal adoption in 2022. How will the Manchester housing market react to it?
Liverpool’s massive facelift involves investments to the tune of billions. These investments give Liverpool the boost that it needs to revitalise the city and galvanise the economy. Image credit: http://bit.ly/2vCyhsW
Though more than 800 years old, the city of Liverpool is vibrant and alive. With a population of almost half a million, Liverpool is home to The Beatles, Liverpool FC, an amazing cultural heritage, several world-class universities, and a massive student population of more than 70,000! Indeed, it has earned a reputation as one of the UK’s top student cities.
Liverpool is at the centre of the UK’s second largest regional economy with access to 6 million customers, an economy worth more than £121 billion and 252,000 businesses.
This beautiful and historic waterfront metropolis is one of the core cities within the UK’s Northern Powerhouse, a government-led initiative to boost economic growth in the North of England by investing in skills, innovation, transport and culture, and devolving significant powers and budgets to directly elected mayors to ensure that decisions in the North are made by the North. Almost sounds like the Game of Thrones, eh 🙂
Liverpool remains a key city in the UK due to the investments that have gone into the city. These investments, comprising several regeneration projects worth several billions, occurring at a steady pace over the years, are giving Liverpool a massive facelift (one of the recently completed regeneration projects is the amazing ONE Liverpool). It is the reason why Liverpool remains on the radar to this day, and why many continue to see Liverpool as a viable place to invest.
Here, we list the current projects going on in Liverpool:
Project Jennifer – £150 million
A regeneration scheme in Liverpool’s Great Homer Street area, which will house a new Sainsbury supermarket, district centre, retail, new link roads and bring up to 1,000 jobs into the area. Click here for the latest update.
Liverpool2 Superport – £400 million
Central to the Liverpool City Region Local Enterprise Partnership to promote the facilities of the Liverpool City Region Superport, this new deep-water container port on the River Mersey was built so that Liverpool could welcome the world’s biggest ships. L2 is the country’s most central container port and geographically the first port of call to Europe from the Americas. It is one of the four key drivers of the city region’s economy. Before, the port could only accommodate 4,500 TEU-capacity vessels, but today, L2 can accommodate ships up to 20,000 TEU. The port is currently undergoing the 2nd phase of expansion which is scheduled for completion in 2019. The HS Paris is the first large vessel to berth at L2, with a capacity of 6,552 TEU. L2 is expected to create approximately 5,000 jobs. Click here for a timelapse of L2’s construction.
Liverpool Waters – £5.5 billion
The scheme aims to redevelop Liverpool’s historic docklands quarter into a world-class waterfront site, creating at least 17,000 new jobs, commercial and residential buildings and facilities for business, leisure and culture, parks and views overlooking the River Mersey. Approvals were granted in 2012 and work on this massive project could take from 25 to 50 years. The team at Liverpool Waters are expecting to see over £300m construction work starting on site by year end. The project site spans 2.3km and is a 2 million sqm development.
Anfield Regeneration – £260 million
Regeneration plans were raised in 2013 and is now underway. The regeneration includes the redevelopment of Liverpool FC’s main stand, new and refurbished housing, improved shopping facilities, office buildings, F&B, a hotel and improvement of the road and surrounding areas. The regeneration is a collaboration between the council, Your Housing Group, the community and Liverpool FC. The regeneration of Anfield continues this year with the installation of new LED lighting in the area. The expansion of the main stand at the stadium has created over 1,000 new match day roles, including catering, retail, hospitality, safety, museum, tour and kitchen teams.
Lime Street Regeneration – £39 million
The developer’s conceptualisation of regeneration at Lime Street. Image credit: liverpoolecho.co.uk
Approved in August 2016, this regeneration will involve the demolition of older derelict buildings, replaced by new leisure, commercial and retail buildings, which includes a hotel and student accommodation. Construction has already begun.
Knowledge Quarter/Paddington Village – £1 billion
The Knowledge Quarter is aimed at promoting the dynamic and innovative industries operating within its area. It is home to some of the world’s most influential players in science, health, technology, culture and education. A key part of the quarter’s plans is Paddington Village, a £1 billion flagship expansion site that will house 1.8 million sqft of science, technology, education and health space. It will be a great place to live, work and socialise; in its centre is The Royal College of Physicians and Liverpool International College, which will host over 45,000 students.
— CSI Prop proudly promotes international investment property with high yields at low risk. Our portfolio comprises residential property in cities across the United Kingdom (London, Luton, Manchester, Liverpool, Newcastle, York, Glasgow, Scotland; Sheffield, etc); Australia (Melbourne, Perth, Brisbane) and Thailand (Bangkok). Our projects are concentrated in high-growth areas with great educational, infrastructural and job growth potentials. We aspire to make a difference in the lives of our clients by helping them achieve their investment goals through strong market research backed by third party experts.
Disclaimer: CSI Prop does not provide tax & legal advice and accepts no liability. Readers are encouraged to consult a qualified tax or legal advisor for a thorough review.
Need advice or clarification? Call us for more information and/or to find out about our projects! Hotline: 03-2162 2260
If you’ve been wandering around London recently, here’s one thing you would’ve probably noticed: the city is moving eastwards. Thanks, in part, to the London Olympics, the population is booming in east London with growth projections of a further 600,000 in the next 15 years. Today, more Londoners live to the east of the Tower Bridge than west of the city as a wave of regeneration sweeps the area.
Amazingly, east London – which encompasses Canary Wharf (London’s financial centre today) and the London Docklands – was once considered undesirable! It is now one of the city’s most eclectic spots, populated by finance sector workers; the design, digital and creative communities; and families. Transport for London has unveiled proposals for 13 new river crossings, most of which is in East London, beefing up the existing transport network which includes Crossrail links and the DLR.
A snapshot of numbers and plans in East London, courtesy of the London Mayor’s office.
According to Jones Lang Lasalle, property prices in East London for the year to Q1 2016 has shown a 7% growth compared to the city centre’s 1.3%. The chart below illustrates the price growth in various areas of London city.
During a recent trip, we explored East London by car, DLR/Tube and on foot. Signs of regenerative work are visible, particularly on the DLR and Tube rides from the heart of the city to the Excel International Convention Centre at the Royal Victoria Dock (travel time: 40 mins). A drive in the opposite direction on our return journey took about 40 mins in clear traffic – very similar to the time taken to drive/ride the LRT from Kelana Jaya to KLCC.
Canning Town: Signs of regeneration in East London are visible from the DLR.
Shadwell is also a place to watch. Walking from Limehouse Marina to Tower Bridge, we noticed this industrial area has seen an injection of residential developments along the main thoroughfare.
Telford Homes’ The Junction is currently under construction along the main thoroughfare of Shadwell.
London’s Docklands area, which includes the Limehouse Basin, Royal Victoria Dock, The Royal Albert Dock and Silverton Quays are transforming, too. The Royal Docks is set to be East London’s next first-time buyer hotspot with plans for 24,000 homes and 60,000 jobs to be created in the area. The Royal Albert Dock, particularly, will become London’s centre for Asian business thanks to the development of the Asian Business Port, creating 20,000 jobs, and generating £6bn to the London economy.
Construction of residences are still ongoing around the Royal Victoria Dock neighbourhood.
We spent some time at the Royal Victoria Dock, one of London’s fast-growing areas (Zone 3), which looks extremely promising.
The waterfront at Royal Victoria Dock is a fabulous place for the neighbouring community with wide pedestrian walks and spaces, beautiful apartments and greens.
The first of the royal docks, the Royal Victoria Dock has undergone massive regeneration and is extremely accessible by the Emirates Air Line (cable car), DLR, Underground and forthcoming Crossrail.
The Emirates Air Line is an attractive feature at the Royal Victoria Dock.
Residents living within the area enjoy access to the Thames waterfront and great quality of life minutes from the city centre, Canary Wharf, the O2 Arena, the forthcoming Asian Business Park and London Airport.
The O2 and cable cars can be seen from the Royal Victoria Dock waterfront.
The surrounding areas of Custom Excel is well established, with several hotels and waterfront residential apartments co-existing peacefully with the convention centre and commercial developments.
The DLR stops right in front of Excel London Convention Centre. Hop on and you’re in the heart of London in about 40 minutes – just about the time it takes to ride the LRT from Kelana Jaya to KLCC!
The forthcoming Crossrail will be a major game changer. Aside from increasing property values along the route, the Crossrail, which will also run through Canary Wharf and East London, will improve connectivity within the city. Travel time will be more efficient as the Crossrail connects Reading to Shenfield while Crossrail 2 runs from Broxbourne to Epsom.
The area is indeed looking up. With improved transport links and gentrification arising from infrastructural investments worth billions, East London is a place to watch.
CSI Prop proudly promotes international investment property with high yields at low risk. Our portfolio comprises residential property in cities across the United Kingdom (London, Luton, Manchester, Liverpool, Newcastle, York, Glasgow, Scotland; Sheffield, etc); Australia (Melbourne, Perth, Brisbane) and Thailand (Bangkok). Our projects are concentrated in high-growth areas with great educational, infrastructural and job growth potentials. We aspire to make a difference in the lives of our clients by helping them achieve their investment goals through strong market research backed by third party experts.
Disclaimer: CSI Prop does not provide tax & legal advice and accepts no liability. Readers are encouraged to consult a qualified tax or legal advisor for a thorough review.
Need advice or clarification? Call us for more information and/or to find out about our projects! Hotline: 03-2162 2260
