Leeds leads the way for retail property value

The study, by DTZ, identifies the most attractive cities for prime commercial property investment.

And it says the market is benefitting from the plunge in oil prices, which has led to UK inflation falling to 0.3 per cent and which has caused the Bank of England to delay raising interest rates.

This has pushed down government bond yields to historically low levels close to one per cent, and the current favourable spreads of property yields over bond yields make UK property more attractive for investors.

Based on property prices for the office, industrial and retail markets, the DTZ research pinpoints cities with the most attractive pricing for investors.

Leeds retail tops the list for commercial value, with the five most underpriced markets this quarter all outside of London.

David Thompson, retail director in DTZ’s Leeds office, said: “The Leeds retail market looks particularly good value at the moment, as yields have not compressed as much as in other, larger, markets.

“In addition there are some good buying opportunities available now, before the whole retail market benefits from the opening of the Victoria Centre with a new John Lewis store in 2016.”

DTZ said its research shows all three UK main commercial property sectors are currently attractively priced with the industrial sector the most appealing.

DTZ global head of forecasting Fergus Hicks said: “Our latest UK fair value index shows that UK property has become more attractive for investors.”