Buy-to-let returns top all other asset classes

Buy-to-let investments have outperformed all mainstream investments over the past 18 years, study finds

Buy-to-let investments have outperformed all mainstream investments over the past 18 years, with annual returns of more than 16pc, according to a study.
Former economist Rob Thomas investigated how much £1,000 would be worth now if it was invested in various asset classes in the final three months of 1996 – the year buy-to-let mortgages were first introduced.
He said every £1,000 invested in an average buy-to-let property bought with a 75pc loan-to-value mortgage was worth £13,048 in the final quarter of 2013, a compound annual return of 16.3pc.

These bumper returns were largely due to the mortgage, which “magnified” investors’ buying power in a process known as leverage.

A cash purchaser would have seen each £1,000 invested grow to £4,791 by the end of 2013 – a compound annual return of 9.7pc.

The report found the same investment in UK commercial property would have grown to £3,654. If the capital was invested in UK equities it would now be worth £3,082 and UK government bonds would have grown to £2,924. If the money was put in cash it would be worth £1,949. The study did not include gold, which has fallen fast in recent years but was the best performing asset in the 2000s.

Leveraging is potentially risky as interest costs can rocket. But in the period since 1996 returns outstripped the interest owed on the loan.

The research assumed that buy-to-let investors who took out a mortgage started with a single property worth the UK average and reinvested in more properties each time their income provided a 25pc deposit and covered the purchase costs.

Source: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/personalfinance/investing/buy-to-let/10788736/Buy-to-let-returns-top-allother-asset-classes.html

Prosperity proudly supports Nick Yelloly in GP3 Series 2014

 Nick Yelloly

New high speed link could boost Birmingham's future housing market

Cutting a minute off a commuter train journey to London adds £1,300 to the price of the average terrace home, and, according to Savills, increases the price of a detached property by £2,250 for every minute saved.
Which could spell good news for home-owners in Birmingham, who will be at the receiving end of the new HS2 high-speed railway when its first phase is completed in 2026.

The new trains are expected to cut the current 1hr 24-minute journey down to 49 minutes, so you could have dinner and see a West End show in London and be home in Birmingham by midnight.
Many are convinced that the £16.4billion scheme is a luxury that the country can’t afford. It will cut a swathe through rural England and will affect many communities. But, on the plus side, it will speed travel to the city that gave us Cat Deeley, Bill Oddie and Richard Hammond.

And there is plenty to lure investors. The city’s diverse food scene includes the Balti Triangle for curry devotees and Michelin-starred chefs. The New York Times has named it one of the must-visit destinations for U.S. tourists.

Cultural interests are also well catered for. Birmingham has its own symphony orchestra, ballet company, opera house and school of acting — and architecturally, there’s a lot more to it than Spaghetti Junction.
The Symphony Hall is a vision of glass on Centenary Square, where construction is also under way on a new Library of Birmingham. The library, along with redevelopment at transport hub New Street Station, is part of the council’s 20-year Big City Plan.
Moss tips the historic Jewellery Quarter, minutes from the city centre, as a good area to consider, thanks to its village atmosphere.
HS2 will also herald a new terminal next to Moor Street Station, within walking distance of the Bullring. Proposals include renovating the listed Curzon Street Station and building a surrounding square that could become a museum quarter. There are already signs of gentrification.
Another clue to HS2’s success could lie in what’s happened with High Speed 1, the railway linking St Pancras with the Channel Tunnel, which provides a faster service between London and Kent.
The journey to Ashford was cut from 84 minutes to 37 minutes, and prices are reported to have increased by 12 to 14 per cent in a year.



http://www.thisismoney.co.uk/money/mortgageshome/article-2095905/New-high-speed-link-boost-Birminghams-future-housing-market.html#ixzz309AaVPwQ