“Total returns for residential property crept up to 9.6 per cent in the year to March, as investors rushed to beat April’s stamp duty deadline.
“This was especially true of London, where annual returns were in double digits, reaching an eye-watering 16.5 per cent. The East was strong too, and from first hand experience the Northern Powerhouse regeneration plan is boosting investment activity in the North West and in particular Manchester.
“Monthly figures can be volatile, but what’s clear is that regional disparities in the housing market are widening, with Yorkshire and Humberside and the North East regions looking fragile.
“Investors are understandably showing caution ahead of the EU referendum. But the fundamentals – high employment, wage growth, cheap borrowing and the chronic shortage of supply – remain in place and are positive.”
The index is the first regular dataset to combine rental income AND capital growth to show the total rate of return of residential property investments over time. It is based on research carried out by the property crowdfunding platform Property Partner of Land Registry and ONS data.