Study reveals how buy to let can cover university fees in Britain

With students returning across Britain, new research shows that Coventry is the top university city for house price growth, with average property prices rising 61%, from £114,625 to £184,690, since the latest graduates started their three year degree courses in 2015.

Property prices in more than half, some 56% of the UK’s top 50 university cities have risen enough over the past three years to cover the £27,250 tuition fees for a three year degree course, according to the study from online estate agents Housesimple.

And in seven university cities, including Loughborough, Manchester and Southampton, current average house prices are below UK average, and price growth since 2015 would have paid for entire tuition fees of £27,250.

The study looked at how house prices have performed since students who have just graduated, started their three year degree courses in 2015.

An average property in Coventry would have set parents back £114,625 in 2015, and today would be worth £184,690. That’s an increase of £70,065 in three years which would have easily covered the £27,250 tuition fees for two children at Coventry University.

Similarly, in Manchester the current average property price is £174,044, up 26.7% or £36,626, since 2015. Essex, Bristol and Kent have all seen average house prices increase more than £53,000 since 2015, which is twice the cost of funding a three year degree.

Cambridge with a £37,594 price increase and Oxford at £28,028 have both seen average property prices since 2015 rise more than the £27,250 cost of a three year degree. However, current average property prices in Cambridge are £440,126 and £402,020 in Oxford, much higher than many of the other university towns, and possibly out of reach of all but the richest few who might consider the buy to let route.

‘The cost of a three year degree at many universities is fast approaching £30,000, and that’s just to cover tuition fees. There’s also accommodation costs and general living expenses to think about,’ said Sam Mitchell, Housesimple chief executive officer.

‘If you are in a position to buy a second home, purchasing a property in the town or city where your child is studying could provide a possible solution and give your offspring a debt-free start in life after university. By investing in a second home, the increase in capital value alone could cover the cost of tuition fees,’ he explained.

‘Of course, there’s no guarantee house prices will continue to rise at the rate they have in many of these cities since 2015, but this is one conceivable way to help cover the cost of higher education in the medium term,’ he added.