SHEFFIELD
With a flourishing population of 730,158 and an economic output of £31 billion per year, Sheffield is an underestimated location for investment covering the city and the metropolitan borough of South Yorkshire.
The city invites 70,000 students into it’s arms every year with 25% of them choosing to stay in the area following their studies; the Sheffield Economic Plan has aimed to grow the population by 70,000 between 2015-2025 which is more than plausible with these figures. With all this population growth it is safe to say that the Borough of Sheffield has a high demand for Buy-To-Let property with demands much higher than production it is a fantastic location for investment.
Sheffield has over 250 gardens, parks and woodland areas with around 2 million trees; the highest ratio of trees to people of any city in Europe. The out of city oasis offers a different lifestyle to other major cities in the UK with so much greenery throughout while sitting next to the M1. Great transport links allow ease of access in and out of the borough and city centre.
The city already has direct trains to London but the development of HS2, the new high-speed rail network, is expected to combine with the Northern Powerhouse Rail Project giving the North better connections. These improved connections will put Manchester and Leeds less than half an hours commute to Sheffield. Sheffield is also a great place for anyone who does a lot of travelling not only across the UK, but over-seas too as the city has 4 airports within half an hour’s drive.
As thousands of graduates choose to settle in Sheffield every year, there is a high demand for jobs with employment rates being the highest in the UK and unemployment rates being halved since 2014. There is no shortage of opportunity here though with it being one of the leading areas for manufacture and engineering in England and homing branches of some of the world’s most famous organisations; BIM, Rolls Royce and Boeing to name a few.
Sheffield is seeing a large amount of regeneration and investment as well with The Heart of the City Project 2 – a £550 million planned investment in the city centre at the forefront. The plans include new residential community, Kangaroo Works, and Grosvenor House for offices and retail use. This all plays a part in the Governments investment strategy for 2015-2025 which has goals of creating 70,000 more jobs, 6,000 more businesses and 30,000 highly skilled occupations.
The great news for workers in the area is that last year, Q2 saw Sheffield’s wages increase by 3.9%, the largest increase in any year since 2008. Plans also include a £3 billion increase in GVA which is certainly obtainable given that GVA performance here has increased by almost £4 billion since 1997 and the economy is continuing to grow by an average of 5% every year.
