Student Population
Preston is known as a thriving student city. The University of Central Lancashire (UCLan) is one of the largest universities in the North West, and it has become a major source of economic growth for the city through employment, housing, and retail.
The 40,000-strong student population is estimated to make up over a quarter of all Preston inhabitants, making it a primary driver of Preston’s private rental market. Although targeting students has some downsides, such as frequently changing tenants, it is one way to ensure consistent rental demand for your buy-to-let property.
Student properties can also command a higher rental yield than the average property. In 2021, Preston was named 9th on a list of top 10 university locations with the best yields, giving as high as 8.01%.
Learn more about the best student property investments in our updated guide!
Regeneration
Often overshadowed by the neighbouring cities of Liverpool and Manchester, Preston is ambitious about being known as the North West’s third city. The amount of regeneration projects that have been recently completed or are currently ongoing is proof of this aspirational spirit.Â
The Harris Quarter Towns Fund Investment Programme is a £200 million transformational project set for completion in 2026. Focused on Preston’s Harris Quarter, it will revitalise the city’s cultural and leisure infrastructure with six individual projects.
According to the UCLan Masterplan, the University of Central Lancashire has also been finishing up its own regeneration projects in recent years. In Summer 2021, a new student centre with an adjacent public square revamped the campus area for students and the local community.
The area around Preston railway station is set to be upgraded, too, with an ambitious redevelopment plan on the cards. At the same time, the Stoneygate Masterplan will revitalise the suburbs close to the city centre by Avenham Park.
Learn more about sustainability and investment with RWinvest’s Manchester Regeneration 2023 guide.
Connectivity and Location
A big part of Preston’s draw for renters is its location. Residents of Preston can drive or hop on the train and make it to Liverpool or Manchester in under an hour. It’s also convenient for visits to Blackpool and the Lake District.
Preston is ideally located for travel by road as it sits on four significant motorways – M6, M61, M65 and M55. It’s easy to see why the area is home to many freight and haulage companies. The Preston Western Distributor Road scheme also finished this year, creating three new roads to ease congestion on the motorway network around Preston.
Preston’s railway and bus network also offers good access to surrounding towns and cities. The city’s public transport links have proposed upgrades on the cards, such as a possible new train station called Cottam Parkway to be built on the north-west side of Preston. Plans for HS2, the proposed high-speed rail network, are set to transform public transport links in Lancashire in the future, and Preston will serve as one of the HS2 stops.
These transport-based schemes and projects will help make Preston an attractive place for renters and improve its image as a convenient hometown for commuters to nearby towns and cities. Why not also take a look at the RWinvest properties available in our Stockport buy-to-let guide.
