My Property Box

County Durham has been named as the third top location in England for buy-to-let, which could attract additional investors from outside the region, says North East estate agency group, My Property Box.

Nine of the top ten worst places for property investment all fall within London, with the other being St Albans in neighbouring Hertfordshire.

Landlords investing in the capital are already facing low rental yields and are at greater risk of suffering a fall in property values – with average house prices dropping £16,000 or 2.3 percent last month.

Ben Quaintrell, the founder and managing director of My Property Box, believes that London’s overheated property market will persuade more investors in the South East to look northwards.

The top ten buy-to-let locations, according to analysis by IMMO, are all in the North and the Midlands – with the top five named as Liverpool, Nottingham, County Durham, Manchester, and Wigan. The five worst buy-to-let locations were: Westminster, St Albans, Hertfordshire; Islington; Camden, and Hackney.

He said: “It’s no surprise to see County Durham placed third as it benefits, from an investor’s point of view, from higher rental yields combined with a lower risk of falling property values.

“Confidence in the rental sector remains strong, despite the rise in mortgage rates which means County Durham, along with the wider North East region, will increasingly be seen as an attractive place to invest in.

This is underlined by December’s Halifax House Price Index which found that the North East had still experienced an annual 6.5 percent rise in property values, with the average home priced at £169,980.

Ben added: ““The North East continues to offer high rental yields and, due to its stability, it is a real investment hotspot, which will help guarantee the supply of much-needed housing for tenants.

“The appeal of rental properties in County Durham remains strong, with supply continuing to outstrip demand with many people continuing to wait for the market to stabilise before making a decision on purchasing a home.”