Buy to let still a good bet

A new report by Halifax claims residential property has been a better investment than cash, shares or bonds over the past decade, in spite of significant falls in house prices between 2007 and 2009.

UK house prices were up 105 per cent in the 10 years to December 2009, while buy-to-let landlords could have made total returns of 187 per cent including rent, said the biggest mortgage lender.

At its Chatham Place development in Reading, Muse Developments has sold a number of its one and two bedroom apartments to buy to let purchasers.

Steve Woodford, Director at Haslams Estate Agents in Reading comments: “Despite what is generally happening in the UK rental market, Chatham Place has continued to provide an excellent buy to let investment. Apartments at the development let within days and we even have a waiting list of people who want to rent an apartment there.”

Chatham Place is a new development in the heart of Reading. This iconic building with its striking eye-catching design incorporates 211 stunningly designed contemporary apartments and penthouses. All are designed with light and space in mind, coupled with the high level of specification making it an ideal place to live, with easy access for both work and leisure. A concierge and a landscaped courtyard garden enhance this development even further, providing premium accommodation as standard.

Reading’s future is being shaped according to the strategic vision: Reading City 2020.This sees the town – a European city in all but name – expanding its centre to the north, east and west and aspiring to be a ‘Green City’, with affordable homes for its burgeoning workforce. Despite Reading’s restrictive administrative boundary and relatively small population it outperforms any of England’s core cities, including London, and over the last decade has been at the forefront of economic performance in the UK.

The town of Reading is one of the most important towns in England in terms of its commercial significance. This is because a number of large British-owned corporations have office space in Reading, indeed many of them have chosen Reading as their Headquarters. Some examples of companies with offices in Reading include Symantec, Yell.com, Microsoft, Oracle, Sage, ING Direct, Cisco Systems and the Prudential. IT and and insurance companies make up a large proportion of the workforce in Reading.

Reading’s mainline train station has several platforms with connections to the West Country, Wales as well as being only 25 minutes to London Paddington. The town is also adjacent to the M4 motorway, with three junctions leading into Reading. London Heathrow Airport is 30 miles away, with Gatwick 60 miles.

Prices start from £155,000 for a one bedroom apartment and £199,950 for a two bedroom apartment. For further information, visit: chathamplace.co.uk