Average rents for apartments in Manchester have risen by 55.4% over the past five years, according to research from global real estate firm JLL.
Its latest Big Six Residential Development Report, covering Birmingham, Manchester, Leeds, Bristol, Edinburgh and Glasgow, also found that average prices have risen by 26% in the same period, underscoring the long-term growth of Manchester’s residential market.
The market in the city has remained steady over the past 12 months, with average rents remaining unchanged and high demand from overseas students in Manchester helping to drive activity over the summer.
Meanwhile prices have only increased by 0.1% since last year. Potential buyers remain cautious due to rising service charges and mortgage costs, with smaller and more affordable one-bed and two-bed flats remaining the most sought-after properties in the city.
Jonathan Wiedemann, head of the North West at JLL, said: “Over the last five years Manchester has made itself a more attractive place to work, study and live, which is reflected by the strong sales and rental growth that the city has enjoyed during this time.
“And this shows no signs of changing, with the market remaining steady over the last year. Now it’s important that efforts are made to help increase the supply in the pipeline, helping us to capitalise on this long-term growth and ensure Manchester’s property markets remains an attractive prospect for investors.”
Meanwhile across the UK housebuilding has fallen to its lowest level in almost a decade in the first half of the year, with the report also revealing just over 200,000 new homes were completed in the past 12 months – down 8% on the previous year and 17% lower than the most recent peak in 2022.
This puts the government’s goal of delivering 1.5 million new homes by 2030 at risk, with the pace of delivery now needing to accelerate beyond the originally planned 300,000 homes a year to meet the Government’s target.
Marcus Dixon, director of UK residential research at JLL, said: “The slowdown in delivery is most acute in our largest cities, where the proportion of high-rise projects is greatest. These delays are adding to the viability challenges already faced by developers, from higher build costs to planning complexity. Without urgent action to streamline the approvals process and unlock stalled schemes, the UK risks falling short of its housing ambitions.”
