• Swindon & Wiltshire Property
• Thursday August 22 2024
• Author Name: Peter Davison

City-loving young professionals driving cost of skyscraper living ever upwards

Young professionals seeking the lifestyle benefits of city centre living are driving up rental prices in Bristol, according to a new report from global property advisor JLL.

The firm’s Big Six report – which tracks residential development activity, prices and rents across Bristol, Birmingham, Manchester, Leeds, Edinburgh and Glasgow – shows that rents of prime apartments have risen 12.1 per cent on average this year.

At one development – Grainger’s Millwrights Place at Finzels Reach in Bristol (pictured) – the average rent of a prime new build one-bed apartment has risen 10.3 per cent over the past year, while two- and three-bed apartments have risen 10.8 per cent and 14 per cent respectively.

The apartments – which are in close proximity to numerous law, accountancy and other professional services firms – come with a gym, free wifi, co-working spaces, and a concierge.

Sales have risen in value by one per cent over the past year and 9.8 per cent since 2021.

Nationally the research showed that annual sales have grown by 1.9 per cent over the past year, with demand for rental properties across the six cities has also remained robust.

Even so, JLL’s research shows the rental market has become more balanced this year. Annual growth, which had soared to double-digit highs in H1 2023, now averages 6.6 per cent across the ‘Big Six’ cities.

Tim Harris, head of the South West at JLL, said: “Bristol continues to show its value to investors, buyers and renters. But its long-held challenge of demand far outstripping supply will continue to stifle the city from reaching its full economic potential until remedied.

“There’s now positivity among the city’s real estate community that a mix of stable politics, reforms to the planning system and a continued fall in interest rates will provide fertile ground for the Bristol property market to build on in the final few months of the year and beyond.”

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