Commercial landlords are expecting the North of England and the East Midlands to provide the biggest development opportunities in the UK over the next two years.
A new study found that offices and flats are seen as the most attractive sectors while overall 39% regard the East Midlands as the best region for investment.
The research, by specialist finance company Together, also shows that 37% believe that the North East and North West are the best for investment while 27% opted for the West Midlands.
A major factor uniting these choices is support for Government backed initiatives which aim to boost the areas economically. Some 47% said that the Northern Powerhouse has made them more positive about the North while 40% said the Midlands Engine initiative has increased their confidence in the region.
London also attracted interest from 36% of landlords but other UK regions were rated much lower. Just 8% believed that the South East and East Anglia offered the best development opportunities and only 3% selected the South West.
#The North of England and the Midlands are attracting interest from commercial landlords who can see real opportunities to expand over the next two years,’ said Andrew Charnley, head of corporate relationships at Together.
‘The Northern Powerhouse and Midlands Engine initiative are playing a part in helping to boost both areas, but landlords are very focused on where they see the opportunities with differences in which sectors are seen as offering the best chances for developments,’ he explained.
‘That underlines the need for lenders who do not take a one size fits all approach and are willing to be flexible in responding to what are often very tight deadlines for funding to be agreed,’ he added.
The study, which questioned a national panel of commercial landlords about their economic confidence in the UK, also found more than two out of five plan major increases in investment in the Midlands over the next two years while 40% will substantially boost their presence across the North of England.
The best performing sectors in the Midlands and North are likely to be office developments and flats. In the North landlords are more bullish about office developments with 49% regarding offices as the best sector compared with 44% in the Midlands.
Landlords believe flats will be strong sectors in both regions with 41% choosing the sector in the North and 40% in the Midlands. But there are differences with landlords seeing strong opportunities in semi-commercial developments in the North and in retail in the Midlands.
