Tag Archives for " Leeds Property "

Regeneration, infrastructure and enterprise is the fuel behind Leeds property investment

It’s all positive for property investors in the heart of the Northern Powerhouse

Leeds has a mind-blowing growth potential for economic growth. In the heart of the Northern Powerhouse, the Leeds city centre region is primed for an explosive future fuelled by a thriving economy that is set to create thousands of new jobs. The investment being made into infrastructure in the region could be the key that unlocks this potential. Billions of pounds are being poured into the transformation of Leeds. We believe that property investors should follow the money.

Transformative transport will propel Leeds to new heights

Leeds is already a well-connected city, with more than 7 million people within an hour of the city centre by road. Its railway station at New Station Street is one of the busiest railway stations in the UK. More than 60 European cities are a flight away from Leeds Bradford Airport. This connectivity is about to get even better.

Currently, Leeds offers rail commuters direct services to Birmingham, Bristol, Exeter, Manchester, Liverpool and London. HS2 will slash journey times to London, from two hours 11 minutes to 1 hour 21 minutes. The first phase of HS2 is due to open in 2026. Commuters and businesses will find Leeds even more attractive than it is today. It will be easier for people and goods to travel in and out of Leeds, and local authorities and businesses are already gearing up for exciting new dawn for Leeds as an economic centre:

• The Strategic Economic Plan focuses on transforming the Leeds City Region
• The aim is to create more than 35,000 new jobs

Regeneration is widespread and largescale

Billions are being invested in the regeneration of Leeds, across the city. Plans in the pipeline and already currently underway include:

The Grand Quarter – transforming the old to develop a modern city

The Grand Quarter is packed with heritage and historic buildings but has been in decline as under-investment led to neglect. Leeds Council is now planning to create a conservation area in the Grand Quarter, protecting local assets, redesigning road layouts, and helping to conserve the qualities of the local area and integrate with future development.

Fewer than two in 10 of the old buildings here are in good condition. The regeneration scheme will help to provide funds to owners to enable them to update and renew, helping to transform this historic heart to a place fit for modern living, but with its character preserved and enhanced.

Mixed-use at Quarry Hill

Hundreds of millions are being invested into the Quarry Hill site, where more than two hectares will sustain a mixed-use development to include two 16-storey residential blocks, bars, restaurants, a new hotel, and open spaces.

At the heart of this project sits City College, West Yorkshire Playhouse, and Leeds College of Music. The West Yorkshire Playhouse has been transformed by a £14 million refurbishment and renamed the Leeds Playhouse. The College of Music is spending £57 million on transforming its campus.

Rebrewing Tetley on the South Bank

The old Tetley brewery site on the South Bank is being redeveloped to provide office, retail and leisure space, and new homes. Two hotels are included in the scheme, which, when completed, will deliver 850 new homes. But this is only the tip of the iceberg on the South Bank, where tens of thousands of jobs will be created along with as many as 4,000 new homes, and a new park.

Enterprise placed front and centre

In 2012, an area at the heart of the Leeds City Region was designated as an Enterprise Zone (EZ). Covering a total of 142 hectares across four sites (Newmarket Lane, Thornes Farm, Logic Leeds, and Gateway 45 (Temple Green). The EZ is located along the East Leeds Link Road linking the city centre to the M1 motorway.

Planning is in place to provide a range of employment uses, including manufacturing, distribution and offices. Hundreds of construction jobs are already supported by the developments. It is envisaged that the EZ will kickstart the regeneration of the wider Aire Valley, which is expected to deliver more than 9,000 jobs by 2025.

Regeneration Leeds – the pure potential for property investors

Leeds is a lifestyle city, ideally located for businesses and its residents. Regeneration spending of billions is planned here, adding to the more than £3 billion already invested in the last 10 years.

The transformation will encourage businesses into the city, and the new jobs created combined with the great lifestyle offering and cheaper cost of living than other cities will encourage more people to move here. The population in Leeds is projected to grow by 123,000 by 2036 (Government Office for Science).

The position of Leeds in the heart of the Northern Powerhouse, the upcoming HS2 services, massive regeneration initiatives, a flourishing local economy, and investment into providing the infrastructure to support business and new jobs, are just a handful of the reasons why we believe Leeds should be on every property investor’s radar.

To find out more and receive an in-depth appraisal of the best property investment opportunities in Leeds, get in touch with Gladfish today.

Live with passion

Brett Alegre-Wood

South Bank regeneration sees prospects in Leeds heading north

Is this the key to unlock exceptional profit potential?

Leeds is one of the UK’s top economic performers. Its economy is diverse and forward-looking, with a rapidly expanding digital and tech sector. It is a university city, supplying local businesses with a steady and growing stream of highly qualified and knowledgeable graduates. The city is one of the nation’s top tourist destinations, with a fantastic retail offering. All this helps to make Leeds a great place to invest, but it gets even better…

HS2 is coming, and Leeds has a strategy to maximise its benefits to the city. The city’s ‘HS2 Growth Strategy’ may not be the most imaginative of titles, but it is an imaginative plan created to build an exciting future for the city. HS2 has the potential to generate £54 billion growth and 300,000 new jobs in the regional economy.

The key to unlocking this potential is creating the infrastructure needed to support growth. The HS2 Growth strategy delivers this and starts with the massive regeneration strategy on the River Aire.

The regeneration of the South Bank

The South Bank is undergoing huge regeneration. It will double the size of the city centre, with mixed-use developments that deliver 8,000 new homes. It is one of the largest regeneration projects in Europe, with an investment of billions of pounds. By the time the 253 hectares have been redeveloped, it should have created an extra 35,000 new jobs.

Everyone working together

Leeds City Council has worked hard to get all stakeholders on board. It is a full-scale, collaborative venture, focused on the objectives of delivering new businesses, new jobs, new homes and new communities. Partners include landowners, investors, businesses, educational partners, existing occupiers, government, and developers. A huge joint effort, with huge ambitions.

Delivering green space and waterfront living

Redevelopment of the waterfront is delivering an increasingly popular location sought after by residents and businesses. It’s a place where people now walk, jog and cycle. With a Waterfront Enhancement Fund in place, there is money available to fund further leisure activities.

A new city centre park will be developed at the old Tetley Brewery site – a prime location which will also provide almost 1,000 new homes, combined with office and commercial space in the midst of more than three hectares of public parkland.

New homes and infrastructure

In the last few months, redevelopment has started on several schemes that will enhance the South Bank further and speed up the growth of Leeds city centre. Homes under construction or with planning approved total around 2,500, with developments including Citu’s Climate Innovation District, Legal & General’s Mustard Wharf, and Dandara Living’s Leodis Square scheme. Combined, £210 million is already committed to these investments.

The council is routing financing from several sources to make its ambitious plans become a reality. This includes bidding under the government’s Housing Infrastructure Fund. This will enable investment into new infrastructure to support and deliver improved connectivity to unlock the potential of the city centre, and accelerate growth.

Exciting times ahead

In the next couple of years, the transformation of this area of Leeds will really begin to take shape and become increasingly apparent. Infrastructure projects will enable the South Bank project to accelerate toward the final vision, which includes:

• £500 million transformations of Leeds train station
• The delivery of 8,000 new homes
• A new city park
• 35,000 new jobs

The agreed Masterplan for the South Bank builds on the development and regeneration that has taken place so far since the South Bank Planning Statement was published in 2011.

Of the Masterplan, the council’s executive member for planning Richard Lewis said, “The shared vision for the South Bank is for it to be a place not only for people to live, learn, work, create and spend time but also for it to be a leading economic driver for Leeds and beyond and a place of global significance for business and investors. This step is an important one to help ensure the vision is realised for the benefit of everyone in Leeds and the wider region.”

Exciting times for Leeds are ahead. Massive investment in infrastructure and regeneration. Thousands of jobs created. Thousands of new homes delivered. Plenty of opportunity for profitable property investment.

To find out more and receive an in-depth appraisal of the best property investment opportunities in Leeds, get in touch with Gladfish today.

Live with passion

Brett Alegre-Wood

Channel 4 invests in Leeds: should investors do the same?

Another confidence booster for property investors in the Northern Powerhouse

Channel 4 has chosen Leeds as the location for its national headquarters, beating strong competition from as many as 30 other UK cities. The move promises to bring more than 300 new jobs to Leeds and support up to 3,000 production jobs in the region.

There are already calls in Parliament for further investment in infrastructure in Leeds to support the move, which Channel 4 believes will “capitalize on a strong and fast-growing independent production sector across the North of England”.

But what does Leeds offer its employees who will be relocating here? And what does it mean to property investors?

Leeds is affordable and exciting

According to Channel 4’s CEO Alex Mahon, when she announced the move to Leeds there was a real buzz in the room. More than 200 of its staff will move to the city next year, and a further 100 roles will be created by 2023, and many of these will be excited by living in Leeds.

Relocating employees will get a lot more property for their money in Leeds. Compare the average house price of around £183,000 in Leeds to around £485,000 in London (Land Registry) and you understand just how much more. More staff will be able to afford their own home at last, and those who already own could unlock a lifestyle they can only dream of right now.

Where will Channel 4 employees decide to live?

Of course, many of the relocating employees will currently be commuters, with round trips of two hours or more each day to work in London. Younger members of staff are likely to take advantage of city centre living in Leeds. Apartments start at around £100,000, and for those who want to try before they buy, rent is far cheaper than in the centre of London.

However, they may have a battle to find the best properties – Leeds is a city in which demand for homes outstrips supply.

Leeds is a lifestyle city

Leeds is a lifestyle city. The fantastic rural landscapes of Yorkshire are a stone’s throw away. The city centre is a nightlife lover’s dream. By road and rail, other cities and locations around the UK are easily accessible. It’s a fantastic place to live, work and play – factors that would not have been lost on Channel 4 executives when making their decision.

(Download your free Leeds Property Investment Guide to learn more about what makes Leeds a great place to invest in property.)

Where might investors buy in Leeds?

Whether investing for capital gain, rental income, or both, Leeds offers great potential for property investors:

• JLL forecasts that property prices in Leeds will grow by an average of more than 20% over the next five years
• Rental yields currently average more than 5%
• Add the two together, and the forecast average return could be around 9% to 10% per year over the next five years

To take advantage of this potential, there are many opportunities in and around Leeds. For example, young professionals seeking a vibrant and lively location may choose to live in a location such as Chapel Allerton. Here you’ll find an eclectic mix of bars, restaurants and shops. This used to be one of the most popular areas for student accommodation, but the regeneration that has (and is) taking place here has prompted a different demographic to locate here.

At Kirkstall, house prices are among the most affordable in Leeds. It is here that you will find some of the best regeneration projects in Leeds, with new, mixed-use riverside communities providing a range of contemporary housing. Better still, the local railway station provides a 10-minute commute into the city centre.

Families may prefer areas such as Headingly or Roundhay, or perhaps some of the nearby towns such as Harrogate. Commuting into Leeds is easy from these areas, and children benefit from some of the country’s highest-ranked schools.

The Channel 4 effect in Leeds

While 300 new jobs directly created by Channel 4’s HQ decision isn’t going to put an immediate rocket under the Leeds property market, it does underline the growing confidence that businesses have in Leeds – at the centre of the Northern Powerhouse. It should give property investors a boost, too. With expectations of strong price growth and better-than-average rental yields, Leeds is a city that should be seriously considered for your next property investment.

To find out more and receive an in-depth appraisal of the best property investment opportunities in Leeds, get in touch with Gladfish today.

Live with passion

Brett Alegre-Wood