Instant Access Properties

The news of recent slowing or even falling house prices which most surveys have revealed of late (Halifax in December being an exception) have done plenty to create the impression that the property market is on a major downturn, offering few prospects for growth.

Yesterday's news from the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors that the majority of surveyors reporting price falls over those reporting rises was at its highest since 1992 will have done little to assuage such fears, but amid this concern there are a number of locations tipped to provide good property investment prospects in 2008.

The Independent listed five areas, each with its own reasons. Scotland was tipped to do better than most places by not following the same cyclical patterns as the rest of the UK market, with high oil prices keeping Aberdeen out in front. Wales was expected to benefit from cheaper second home prices than those across the border in the Cotswolds, while Liverpool could expect to reap the benefit of its high profile as the 2008 European Capital of Culture.

However, one theme which frequently arises in the development of property investment markets is that of trains, planes and automobiles, or at least the former two. This has been shown often enough in the cases of overseas properties, with the attention given to the new possibilities for investors in northern France as the faster Eurostar increased the potential for commuters to live in France and take the train to work in London, or the advantages locations in Spain or Cape Verde have had from new air services. 

 

So too, it would appear, this applies in Britain. The other two places listed in the Independent's hotspots list were east London and north Kent. In the former case, of course, much of the development is down to the massive investment in redevelopment which comes as part of the Olympic package. But one element of that package is better transport links, with the paper noting that the newly extended East London Line will be up and running in 2010. This, the paper suggested, will help raise property prices as commuters can enjoy better links within the metropolis.

 

This is not the only new transport advantage the area will enjoy, property portal BuyAssociation has noted. Spokesman Paul Collins stated that London City Airport will be expanding as well. While transport expansions can be good or bad depending on a number of factors, the urban nature of the airport and the low noise levels generated by the limited size of the aircraft that can use it meant it was "more of an advantage" in his view.

 

Overall, however, east London was certainly doing well in transport investment terms from the Olympic developments, he added, stating: "The transport is good, particularly in that part of London because you've got the new developments going into the Olympics site, you've got the fact that the Docklands Light Railway is extending down to Woolwich as well."

The Independent's listing of north Kent is also transport-related, citing the new high-speed rail links into London from towns such as Chatham and Dartford.

While it is true that not all the places expected to do well have transport improvements on the way (Liverpool, for example, has been frustrated in its attempts to acquire a tram system), the connection appears to be a clear one in the densely-populated south-east, where the need for good public transport is greater with congestion charges and longer travel-to-work distances. Where such factors apply, investors may wish to pay closest attention to where the next transport developments are taking place.