Amazon is opening a parcel centre in Doncaster that will create over 1,300 permanent jobs later in the year. How will this impact the Yorkshire town’s property market?
Tech giant Amazon is expanding across the UK. More than 10,000 jobs will be brought forward. This will take its UK workforce to more than 55,000. Additionally, a £10m programme will help employees gain new skills.
Business Secretary Kwasi Kwarteng claimed the expansion was “a huge vote of confidence for the British economy”.
Opening up a range of opportunities for workers, the move is expected to boost the economy as the UK recovers from the COVID-19 pandemic. A number of corporate positions are opening in Manchester, London and Edinburgh.
However, the online giant isn’t just looking to expand in the UK’s major cities. The company has also strategically picked locations in smaller regional towns and cities for warehouses and other facilities. For example, Amazon will be opening a new parcel centre in Doncaster.
Levelling up
In recent years, Doncaster has undergone significant redevelopment. With more jobs coming to the town, this will help “level up” Doncaster and the wider region. More companies may follow suit. It will also likely bring further investment to the area in the coming years.
Doncaster boasts a strategic location within the UK and boasts strong connectivity. The town is located at the heart of the motorway network, has a rail hub with regional, national and European connections and is home to one of the fastest growing international airports in the UK.
London, Manchester, Birmingham and Newcastle are all less than 90 minutes away by train. And Leeds is only a 30-minute rail journey away. Additionally, 87% of the UK population is reachable in a four-hour drive, according to Business Doncaster.
Property investment
With employment rates on the rise, population and rental demand are also increasing in Doncaster. However, average house prices are still at affordable levels. According to Zoopla, the current average house price in Doncaster is £166,149. This is an 8.4% rise year-on-year.
Property investors could take advantage of the lower entry prices there. Less leverage is potentially needed. However, it also increases the scope for high yields. And with the area slated for growth, this could make the town a great choice for property investment.
The wider region of Yorkshire and the Humber is slated for strong house price growth in the coming years. Savills predicts house prices in the region will increase by 28.2% in the five years to 2025. Many investors are keen to get their foot in the door to maximise the potential price hikes.
Many professionals in the property industry are urging investors to consider secondary and tertiary towns and cities. Areas with buoyant local economies and a wide range of employment opportunities often lead to strong rental yields and longer-term capital appreciation.
Recently, Doncaster was even ranked the 12th most profitable place to purchase a buy-to-let property investment by Address Intelligence. Only two spots behind Manchester, this town in South Yorkshire is proving to be an up-and-coming property investment hotspot with positive growth prospects.
