As the UK's residential property investment community prepares for its traditional spring gathering at London ExCeL, a very old joke come to mind, "...If all the economists in the world were laid end to end, they still wouldn't reach a conclusion…" It's one that could be applied equally to property market pundits.
And against this backdrop, one category cast-iron guaranteed to divide opinion is Student Investment. A long-time 'sector darling' the demand for bespoke, often off-plan developments have seen increasing interest in recent years. But why? Well that seems to depend on just who do you listen to. The answer seems to involve a combination of low purchase prices with advertised rental yields of (typically) 7% - 10% net per year and the opportunity for excellent capital growth in a short space of time with, in some cases, the reassurance of rental guarantee periods and even the occasional developer buy back option. Location sees local supply/demand factors being pitched against the merits of Russell Group university status while the sector's dissenters point to the lack of usage flexibility compared with, say, a traditional buy-to-let.
What is certain, however, (at the time this magazine went to press) is that visiting investors at the show will be able to peruse what is probably the broadest selection of student accommodation schemes ever presented under one UK event roof - with London, Manchester, Salford, Liverpool, Bradford, Leeds, Sheffield, Doncaster, Newcastle, Sunderland, Preston, Leicester, Nottingham. Huddersfield, Glasgow and Dundee among the locations represented.
Followers of international property trends - and monitors of (lack of) confidence levels in the Eurozone - won't be too surprised to learn that the event again anticipates a varied representation from the safer haven of United States - Florida (of course) but also a mix from other states and cities. And they'll be on the lookout for progress reports on a recent hotspot and SIPPable property pioneer - Cape Verde.
For entry level / novice investors the show remains an efficient way to conduct initial research, to compare and contrast. The seminar programme presents a mix of the established and new - with enough independent speakers to ensure a healthy mix of views (speakers include Property Investor News editor, Richard Bowser as well as RICS's Peter Bolton King and John Charcol's Ray Boulger).
Five years of tightened lending criteria continues to act as an effective barrier to entry to those at the novice end of the investor scale, but the show organiser's early visitor registration figures indicate that a healthy number of this group will be in attendance and are preparing to buy - just as soon as somebody will lend to them. They also provide an interesting barometer to the level of potential interest in the sector - and on current evidence the outlook is healthy.
Veteran investors will find plenty to interest them too - with the availability in the hall of various off-market deals always a magnet.
Expect the 'alternative investment' sector to be represented too. This category embraces a broad church, enveloping opportunities with strong links to property (e.g. Care Homes, Hotel Rooms) through to Green/Eco investment in crops and/or the land they grow on to the more novel (e.g. Storage Units), which always seems to produce puzzled looks on the faces of traditional landlord attendees. But with many agents who were formerly 'real estate only' operators now presenting these options alongside their standard offering it is surely right that this event provides space for them, particularly as many come with the 'lower than property' investment requirements.
While possibly not a defined category as such, the number of investment propositions offering some sort of 'Exit Strategy' element is plainly on the increase - or 'Trending' as Twitter users would no doubt tweet.
One more thing: At an absolute minimum, this event creates a welcome forum at which the industry can come together - under the same roof - to agree, to disagree, and to interact.
Do make the effort to attend. Then draw your own conclusions.
