Northern Housing Markets Outlook with JLL 2023 – Event write-up

International real estate company JLL gave a session on market trends in housing on the 22^nd February 2022. The session was hosted by NHC with involvement from members in the roundtable. From JLL, we had Marcus Dixon and Paul Winstanley, who gave insights into the economic insight into the housing market, the PRS and the situation in social housing. The session was chaired by Dave Richmond, chief executive of St. Leger Homes.

The session began with an introduction from Marcus Dixon with an economic narrative giving a breakdown of what is happening in different areas of the housing market. Mr. Dixon informed the roundtable of key headlines, such as the fact that housing prices have risen significantly over the past two years, with a 27% rise compared to pre-pandemic. Similarly, when looking at the private rented sector, JLL predicts that rents are predicted to grow by 15.6% over the next 5 years. JLL highlighted that it is the poorest households who will be impacted by any financial instability, and according to their presentation around 40% of those in the lowest income bracket rent through either a housing association or a local authority. Finally, the presentation ended with information around the highlighted living priorities for people, in terms of things that are important for people in terms of what they look for in a home. These include; Access to green spaces, close to public transport, Broadband, Energy efficiency and space for home office.

Secondly, Paul Winstanley gave an update on what is happening in the private rented sector, informing the group that regulatory factors are having an impact on the financial viability of landlords in the PRS sector and they’re being asked to do more and more. The key headline from this presentation is that landlords in the PRS are valuable as they increase the amount of housing available on the market. However, now, landlords are leaving the markets due to increasing pressures, and this is having an impact on the amount of housing going forward. Mr. Winstanley highlighted to the group that there needs to be consideration for the PRS alongside affordable housing to help solve the housing crisis.

Finally, there was a questions and answers session chaired by Dave Richmond, with questions from the group asking about regional differences in the market, age profiles of potential buyers, the situation for social landlords and homelessness. JLL gave their insight into the questions and answers informing the group of trends that are appearing in each of these questions.

The NHC would like to thank JLL for their participation in the event, particularly Marcus Dixon and Paul Winstanley for their engagement with the group and for their presentations. If you would like to find out more about the Roundtable with JLL, please contact Liam Gregson, Membership Engagement Manager liam.gregson@northern-consortium.org.uk.