Is location still important?
When Covid 19 hit the UK, the rules changed. No longer were people expected to be in the office five days a week and working from home became the norm. With that followed a shift in property purchasing trends with many seeing it as an opportunity to leave their urban lives behind and head off into the countryside.
However, no matter what buying trend there maybe, location remains at the forefront of everybody’s agenda. It wouldn’t be right to write a piece on location without mentioning the phrase, ‘Location, location, location.’ It still remains the number one factor when either buying an owner occupied residential property or an investment property. However, what are the things you should be looking out for?
The most obvious aspect when it comes to location is return on investment. A property purchase is probably going to be the largest monetary purchase you will make and could be one of the most important decisions you will make in your life. Ensuring you make a return on the investment, whether it be through rental income or a capital gain, it could be one of the most rewarding investments you will make. As we all know, investments can go up or down but researching the potential return is of paramount importance to any property acquisition.
Furthermore, whether it is a property investment or not, it is integral to assess the local amenities and decipher whether there is the local infrastructure in place for either yourself or your target market. We have seen in the past some landlords target less affluent areas or up and coming locations but if the necessary amenities are not in place it will be harder to attract tenants or a future sale. Proximity to schools, shops and hospitals to name a few are features people tend to look out for.
However, it is transport links that often peak people’s desires. If you look at Rightmove, the proximity to stations etc features prominently on the web listings. Rightmove and the like spend millions on website positioning and it is not by accident the transport links appear so prominently. Despite the post Covid trend of moving further out of the urban domain, many still want quick access into the cities. Transport clearly plays a major role in this so when purchasing a property bear this in mind.
Regeneration is also something to keep an eye on. Not only in the major cities but also in areas marked for investment. Monitoring the local press and government directives could give you a head start when choosing where to buy.
There are almost an endless number of factors when it comes to choosing the location of a property purchase and much of the ones you pay attention to depends on your motivation. However, no matter what your driver, location remains and will remain integral.
