The Rugby housing market is a fascinating beast and has been particularly interesting since the Credit Crunch of 2008/9 with the subsequent property market crash. There is currently some talk of a ‘property bubble’ nationally as Brexit seems to be the ‘go-to’ excuse for every issue in the Country. Upon saying that, looking at both what we do as an agent, and chatting with my fellow property professionals in Rugby, the market has certainly changed for both buyers and sellers alike (be they Rugby buy to let landlords, Rugby first time buyers or Rugby owner occupiers looking to make the move up the Rugby property ladder).

Rugby house values are 6.9% higher than a year ago, and the rents Rugby tenants have to pay are 1.6% higher than a year ago

When we compare little old Rugby to the national picture, national property values have risen by 0.4% compared to last month and risen by 3.0% compared to a year ago, and this will surprise you even more, as nationally, property values are 19.8% higher than January 2015 (compared to 11.4% higher in the EU in the same time frame).

However, if we look further back…

Since 2006, Rugby house values are 42.8% higher, yet the rents Rugby tenants have had to pay for their Rugby rental property are 17.7% higher

…which sounds a lot, yet UK inflation in those 12 years has been 42%, meaning Rugby tenants are 24.3% better off in ‘real spending power terms’.

Looking at the graph, the rental changes have been much gentler than the roller coaster ride of property values. I particularly want to bring to your attention the dip in Rugby house values (in red) in the years of 2008 and 2009 … yet as Rugby property values started to rise after the summer of 2009, see how Rugby rents dipped 6/12 months later (the yellow bars)…. Fascinating!

So, we have a win for tenants and a win for the homeowners, as they are also happy due to the increase in the value of their Rugby property.

However, maybe an even more interesting point is for the long-term Rugby buy to let landlords. The performance of Rugby rental income vs Rugby house values has seen the resultant yields drop over time (if house prices rise quicker than rents – yields drop).

Whilst, it’s true Rugby landlords have benefited from decent capital growth over the last decade –with the new tax rules for landlords – now more than ever, it’s so important to maximise one’s yields to ensure the long term health of your Rugby buy to let portfolio. More and more I am sitting down with both Rugby landlords of mine and landlords of other agents who might not be trained in these skills – to carry out an MOT style check on their Rugby portfolio, to ensure your investment will meet your future needs of capital growth and income. If you don’t want to miss out on such a MOT check up, drop me a line – what have you got to lose? 30 minutes of time against peace of mind – the choice is yours.