In Scotland, buy-to-let investors experienced an annual rental yield of 4.7 per cent on average in August 2018. These returns prove favourable when compared to rental yields in Wales and England, where returns reached 4.4 per cent last month.
The statistics, provided by the most recent Scotland Buy to Let Index, commissioned by estate agent, Your Move, show that property investors in Scotland continue to experience better rental yields when compared to the vast majority of regions within Wales and England.
Only landlords who invested in buy-to-let properties situated in the North West and North East areas of England experienced higher rental returns than landlords in Scotland, with impressive yields of 4.8 and 5 per cent respectively.
However, the average rent dipped by around 0.1 per cent across Scotland in August of this year, compared with last year’s statistics, with an average pcm (per calendar month) of £572. It is also important to bear in mind that there are, of course, some disparities between regions, with some areas demonstrating strong growth, and others experiencing some modest decline in rental yields.
The Highlands and Islands saw the largest gains in rent, with the average rent increasing by around 13.3 per cent in the year leading up to August. This equated to an average rent of £684pcm in the region. This now makes the region the most expensive location to rent in Scotland, overtaking regions such as Lothians and Edinburgh in price, where rents increase 2.4 per cent year on year. The average rent in Edinburgh and the surrounding area is now £682pcm.
Your Move Scotland’s Lettings Director, Brian Moran, commented that following strong rental price growth and increased demand, Scotland has enjoyed higher rental yields. However, he stated that the rental market in Scotland is low when compared to the previous year, but the improving finances of tenants is positive news for landlords.
Overall, three out of the five regions in Scotland have experienced significant rises in rent over the past 12 months. The third area to see a rise in rent was the Glasgow and Clyde region, where rental properties encountered a rise in rent of 9.5 per cent in the past year. Landlords in this region can now expect a rent of £602pcm.
However, rent yields in the South of Scotland dropped by 4.1 per cent in the past 12 months, reaching an average rent of £542pcm. The East of Scotland also experienced a decline in rent of 2.4 per cent, with the average price falling to £527pcm, becoming the cheapest area in Scotland to rent a property.
Ensure you are being transparent and fair – start using a property inspection app today to produce professional inventories, check-ins, check outs, interim inspections, building inspections, risk assessments and more with InventoryBase.
Start your free trial here today.