Investor gets bullish in Brum

Dear Diary,

I had an email from a developer offering hot news on a new build in Bury, detailing the exciting opportunities and telling me all about the area, known regionally as a town with a famous market. Mention of the Metro connections and re-opening of the East Lancashire Light Railway running from Bury to Rawtenstall.

This development, conveniently situated off the Manchester Road on the main route to Bury and Manchester City Centre with lots of attractions. So, I checked out the literature, did the sums and decided to look further, knowing the area quite well already having 3 properties in the locality, awaiting floor plans and will see how the deal checks out.

Took a trip to Birmingham, house hunting and a bit of shopping in the Bull Ring – a great day out! Followed by a weekend in Great Malvern to look for an ideal home for a friend with a precise list of requirements.

Post on The Mail Box
In Birmingham City Centre I looked at a couple of developments in the Mail Box, an exclusive shopping and media centre, swish apartments overlooking the trendy canalside bars – a definitive lifestyle approach to city centre life in Brum. The second was a block in the Jewellery Quarter of the City, both mightily impressive but didn’t stack up as far as optimum space was concerned. Where do you put “real life” in these trendy abodes – when I make my first million I will have one as a crash pad {living very minimally, eating out a lot and enjoying a glass of wine whilst gazing out of the floor to ceiling windows across the water!}

Onwards to Great Malvern, en route to my destination passing a woman with a parked up camper van loading it up with bottles and canteens of Malvern Spring Water straight from a tap in the hills – she must have gone home with gallons of the sfuff, all for free !

Had a wander up the High Street checking out the estate agents and found one I simply had to view. This was a period semi, 5 bedrooms, 3 bathrooms set on 3 floors, contemporary dining kitchen, off road parking and within the budget for friends wanting to work from home with a view of the Hills. It had been on the market for seven months and the vendors wanted to move on so were open to offers. A below asking price offer has just been accepted and everyone is happy.

Invest in E15
Back to London and an interesting development – an invitation to the launch of a new apartment block in what will be the Media Centre of the Olympic Development. Armed with the brochures I went along with a list of questions regarding rental potential, costings on both residential and commercial units and what discounts were available, I was offered 5% over the launch weekend. I received a follow up call 3 days later offering me 10% - glad I didn’t buy on day one !

Maybe Romania?
Further afield, an area to watch is Brasov, Romania’s second city with new build apartments at discounted entry prices for a limited period. The area is undergoing a major capital growth programme, a new motorway and international airport are currently under construction. Brasov enjoys the diversity of an attractive old town square and access to a popular ski resort, a lifestyle destination for the holiday market and money to be made by the investor with an eye for a deal.

The debate over lifestyle vs. investment was a hot topic at the Overseas Property Professionals Show recently at the Excel centre.

News on that show to follow.

More soon, Jan