Why everyone will be investing in Belfast 2021

When and where to invest, that is the problem - and the property market doesn’t stay still.

Assessing when to buy can result in blocks to take action, and lack of knowledge of a particular area can hinder decisions.

In this article I suggest that Belfast is one of the UK’s best kept property investing secrets, why now is a good time to buy, current developments, and what strategies work.

For further information on ROI, yield, house prices, growth and rental demand check out: ‘5 Reasons why you should to Buy-to-Let in Belfast’.

The Property Market

Let’s set the scene.

The property market is booming.

You might question this after the year we have had.

Yet, on the flip side, we have never had so much money pumped into the economy at any one time!

In quarter 1 in NI, House price growth accelerated to 4.7% year on year, and 1.9% on the previous 3 months period. (source:PropertyPal Housing Market Trends Q1 2021).

There are factors supporting this:

● less supply meeting demand

● an onslaught of first time buyers onto the market

● pent up post Covid demand.

Covid-19 has been the anomaly of our times.

But, in the 18 year property lifecycle we are also currently entering a rising market.

According to this cycle, now would be a good time to buy, as prices will continue to increase!

Regeneration

Regeneration transforms areas into places where people want to live, socialise and work. Coupled with a good infrastructure, these places become attractive to tenants.

For a while in the 20th century, Belfast was a bit behind other cities.

Years of The Troubles had affected the city and stalled progression.

But, over the past 20 years we have seen the cityscape blossom. House prices also still remain cheap in comparison to the rest of the UK.

There are major redevelopment plans currently, across the city. This includes a city centre ￡550m redevelopment for living, working and tourism.

The city centre is far behind other cities in housing. A recent Belfast City Chamber webinar showed 254 new homes created in Belfast city centre in 2016-2020, compared to 13,999 in Manchester!

Belfast City Council are on it though.

By 2035 they envisage 30,000 new homes in the centre increasing the current 3000 residents to 66,000.

The city is an attractive prospect for both tenants and investors. It also has some of the best infrastructure and connectivity in the UK. This has included the highest availability of superfast broadband, and being the first to service 5G.

Industry

Part of the melting pot of a vibrant and successful city is not only regeneration and development, but a thriving industry.

Belfast continues to attract people seeking job opportunities, through continuous investment and businesses setting up in the city.

It has a reputation of being a technological and digital hub. The city ranks within the top 10 Tech cities of the future for 2020/21 (fDi intelligence).

Belfast is also the 2nd fastest growing knowledge economy (investinbelfast.com).

The city’s reputation as a location for film and television production has also grown in recent years. It is one of the fastest growing creative clusters in the UK, home to over 1,600 companies employing 20,000 people.

The centre and its surrounding areas are thus thriving. And with one of the youngest populations across Europe’s cities, there is a strong need to meet housing demand.

So, what strategy works in Belfast?

All property strategies work well in Belfast.

Serviced accommodation is showing success in the surrounding areas of the city. With more and more management companies restricting SA in the centre, there are still ample opportunities nearby. This includes within walking distance to the centre and train station, all for under ￡100k.

The rental market is strong, with high numbers interested in all housing levels. Growth in demand has been increasing. In 2014 there were 40,000 rental properties and in 2019 this had jumped to 130,000.

All areas of the city in and outside of the centre are experiencing this buoyant market. 2 bed terraces refurbed to a high standard have been attracting ￡650-700pcm in rent.

There is a market for HMO’s too. With more and more purpose built student accommodation, and restrictions in saturated areas, attracting the higher paying professional tenant has become a successful route.

Refurb projects are also available, but you will need to get lucky with price in today’s market. Adding value and refinancing works very well where you can spot the potential in a property. You may need some imagination and experience to identify these opportunities.

Why invest in Belfast?

Apart from locals and people with links to Northern Ireland, Belfast is often overlooked by the savvy investor or foreign property investor.

As Belfast puts itself more and more on the map and becomes seen as a viable contender to Northern cities and London, we may see competition for investment property in Belfast increase even further...

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