A look at Lavant's property market

I was contacted recently by a landlord who was looking to purchase a buy-to-let property and had stumbled upon a three-bedroom house in Lavant that he felt fit the bill. He contacted me to see what I thought of the property and of Lavant in general. This is what I found out for him…

There have only been 14 properties sold in Lavant in the past 12 months, so valuing property there can be a bit of a minefield. It’s even tougher for rental properties, where there is currently only one property to rent in the whole of Lavant!

Not only does this make it difficult to value the property accurately so as to maximise your return without encountering prolonged void periods, it also suggests there’s not much of a rental market in Lavant.

This is backed-up by Census data from 2011, indicating just 6.5% of residents in Lavant privately-rented their home (compared to a healthier 19.4% in Chichester).

With its own primary school, rated as ‘good’ by Ofsted, Lavant is a family-orientated area. This means the type of property the landlord was looking at (a three-bed house) was a good fit for the area compared to, say, a small flat.

This is also proven from a capital growth perspective in the long-term, as flats in Lavant have increased in value an average of 15.2% in the past five years and 256% in the past twenty years. This compares to houses in Lavant, which have increased an even more impressive 18.2% and 288% in value in the past five and twenty years respectively.

One dark cloud hanging over Lavant that could affect this positive uptrend is the risk of an A27 bypass heading North (past Lavant). This would bring with it both noise pollution and the loss of open space that could de-value property in the area.

The three-bedroom house the landlord was interested in was priced at £290,000. If it were to let for the anticipated rental figure of around £1,000pcm, it would generate a 4.1% rental yield. This is a relatively low return compared to many of the properties I feature as my “buy-to-let deal of the week”.

I think there are better areas than Lavant in terms of a rental investment, which could offer a better rate of return alongside a greater number of prospective tenants wanting to rent the property (meaning fewer void periods).

However, for owner-occupiers Lavant is not only a lovely place to live, complete with its own well-regarded school, but has a history of good capital growth.

If you wish to discuss the local property market or would like me to take a look at a specific property you intend to buy for investment, please get in touch.

(This article was featured in the Chichester Observer's property section 

on 12th November 2015).

Clive Janes, CRJ Lettings.  

www.crjlettings.co.uk

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If you are looking for an agent that is well-established, professional and communicative in Chichester, then contact us to find out how we can get the best out of your investment property.

E-mail me on clive@crjlettings.co.uk or call 01243 624 599.

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