Investor appetite continues in 2023, demonstrating resilience amid financial market volatility
Property investors based in Hong Kong and Singapore still favour English regions such as London, North West, and West Midlands for their buy-to-let investments despite the country’s uncertain economic conditions, offshore bank Skipton International has revealed.
According to data provided by estate agent Hamptons, which, along with Skipton International, is part of the Skipton Group, over 400 rental property sales were recorded by Hong Kong investors and over 200 by Singapore investors using the bank’s buy-to-let mortgages in 2022.
Around 40% of these sales were in London; followed by 23% in the North West, which includes urban areas such as Leicester, Liverpool, and Manchester; and by 15% in The Midlands, which includes Birmingham, Coventry, and Nottingham. The remainder was split across numerous areas across the UK.
Away from city centres such as Birmingham, Cardiff, Edinburgh, Liverpool, London, and Manchester, where house prices continue to increase, houses in commuter towns and villages also attract higher rental rates.
Commenting on this finding, Lorraine McLean, mortgage sales manager at Skipton International, explained that this had shown that Hong Kong and Singapore buy-to-let purchasers saw UK property as a safe haven asset class amid last year’s political upheaval and global market volatility.
“Through introducing new products and competitive mortgage rates, Skipton International offers customers additional opportunities to fund their property portfolios,” said McLean (pictured).
These products include limited company (special purpose vehicle) buy-to-let lending, base rate trackers, and fixed rate mortgages.
Skipton International also reported that in the first two months of 2023, it had completed on buy-to-let mortgages with a value of over £44 million from investors based in Hong Kong, Singapore, and the United Arab Emirates alone. In comparison, the same period last year saw a slightly lower value, indicating house prices are increasing in the UK.
“The UK property market appears attractive to overseas investors for various reasons, including a stable and transparent legal system, an appetite for various cities and towns, and the demand for rental properties continues to outstrip supply,” added Jim Coupe, managing director at Skipton International.
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