Sheffield Property Investment Case

Sheffield is the 4th largest city in England and is the only UK city with a National Park within its boundary. The city is well known for steel and manufacturing and has established a reputation as the number one destination for outdoor enthusiasts. The Peak District National Park became the first national park in the United Kingdom in 1951 and attracts millions of visitors every year. 61% of Sheffield’s entire area is green space, and a third of the city lies within the Peak District National Park. Sheffield is also England’s safest major city, according to the UK Peace Index – awarded the Purple Flag for city safety, making it one of the safest places in the country for a night out seven years running.

Employment:

Sheffield is the heartbeat of UK manufacturing and is the choice for global names like Boeing, Tata and Rolls-Royce. The digital and new media industries in the Sheffield City Region are also growing at a faster rate than anywhere else in the UK in terms of specialist companies and new jobs. Quite simply, Sheffield is an incubator for the digital industries. Sheffield is also a hotspot for major businesses with: Aviva, BT Group, DLA Piper, IBM, HSBC national IT Centre, Nationwide, as well as Sky & Virgin Media residing in Sheffield. Sheffield Hospital also maintains a global reputation for its research.

Education:

Home to two world class research universities, The University of Sheffield and Sheffield Hallam University, Sheffield has a student population of more than 60,000 students; over 35% of the graduates from these universities remain in the city every year.
The University of Sheffield is a world-top 100 university and a member of the prestigious Russel Group. Sheffield Hallam University was awarded the University of the Year for Teaching quality in the Times and Sunday Times Good University Guide in 2020.

Transport & Connections:

Sheffield has secured an £80 million investment as part of a bid secured from central government by Sheffield City Region improving connections across the city centre. The city is well connected with links into the national motorway network via the M1 and M18 motorways. The M1 skirts the North-East of the city, linking Sheffield with London to the South and Leeds to the North.
The Tramway System, known as the Sheffield supertram, was constructed in the early 1990’s and consists of three spokes that run from the city centre out to Hillsborough, Halfway, and Meadowhall Centre.
Sheffield is located less than 35 miles from many major cities; 30 miles to Leeds, 31 miles to Manchester, 32 miles to Bradford, 32 miles to Nottingham and 30 miles to Derby.

Regeneration:

Sheffield City Region negotiated its unique devolution deal with Government, pumping £1.3 billion into the local economy over the next 30 years. The deal gives Sheffield City Region devolved decision making powers on infrastructure, transport, skills, housing and drivers of business growth.

Heart of the City II is part of a £470 million plan for hotels, shops, a food hall, public spaces, and accommodation for the area behind Pinstone Street. A triangular area stretching 1.5 million sqft (139,000 sqm) from Pinstone Street to Devonshire Street and Fargate will be redeveloped.

The Innovation District is a physically and technically connected hub of innovation where research institutions and companies co-locate and collaborate with entrepreneurs, business start-ups and incubators. It is home to world-class brands including Boeing, Mclaren Automotive, Rolls-Royce, Arconic, Tata Specialist Steels, Toshiba and Forgemasters. At the heart of the Innovation District, sits the Advanced Manufacturing Park (AMP) and Sheffield Business Park, which – with over a decade of investment – have both expanded to create a 200 acre park Research Campus connecting Sheffield and Rotherham and acting as a nucleus for the wider geography. The Innovation District itself spans over 2,000 acres.

The first building to be completed as part of the Heart of the City II scheme is Grosvenor House – the new Sheffield headquarters for HSBC. HSBC has taken out a 15-year lease on the building, which incorporates 140,000sqft of office space and a rooftop terrace. This building also includes ground floor space for new shops and restaurants, as well as a quality public space in Charter Square. Swedish fashion brands, Monki and Weekday, and independent Sheffield café Marmadukes, were the first retail occupiers to sign up to the scheme.

CMS top 10 global law firm is to take 47,500 sqft of premium Grade A office space within the same landmark building that is also the new home to HSBC. Relocating from its current base at Victoria Quays and preserving the firm’s presence as a major employer in the city.
Sheffield City Centre will be directly connected to HS2 and Sheffield Midland Station. HS2 will run from London to Birmingham, then on to Manchester and Leeds, calling at Sheffield. This will reduce Sheffield’s journey times to London by 40 minutes. Sheffield will also benefit from the development of Northern Powerhouse Rail, which will reduce journey times to Leeds and Manchester to under 30 minutes, opening up new labour markets and expanding business opportunities.

Housing Market:

In the last 12 months, Sheffield apartments have experienced an increase of 8.53% and an 18.02% increase over the last 5 years. (Zoopla April 2021 – https://www.zoopla.co.uk/house-prices/browse/sheffield/?q=sheffield

The average apartment price in Sheffield is £143,555, higher than the price of an apartment in Yorkshire and the Humber which is averaged at £129,835 and this difference is only expected to grow so now is the ideal time to invest. (Zoopla April 2021) https://www.zoopla.co.uk/house-prices/browse/yorkshire-and-the-humber/?q=Yorkshire

Projections: (Savills March 2021) https://www.savills.co.uk/research_articles/229130/311753-02021 – 4.5%
2022 – 6.0%
2023 – 5.5%
2024 – 5.0%
2025 – 4.5%
5 years to 2025 – 28.2%