Brexit causes commercial property investors to put plans on ice

New research commissioned by Experience Invest claims that the majority of UK commercial property investors have put their financial plans on hold as they await the Brexit deadline and 2019 Autumn Budget, new research from Experience Invest claims. Experience Invest commissioned an independent survey of over 1,000 property investors, who all own three or more residential properties in the UK.

It suggests that 55 percent have paused on their investment plans in the past six months as they await the outcome of Brexit. Even more (59 percent) are eager to discover the contents of the new government’s 2019 Autumn Budget before committing to any major financial decisions.

Over half (56 percent) of investors have no faith that Boris Johnson will make a success of Brexit.

The independent survey of more than 1,000 UK-based property investors found:

• The majority (55 percent) of UK property investors have paused on their investment plans over the past six months as they await the outcome of Brexit
• 59 percent are waiting for the 2019 Autumn Budget before pressing ahead with their investment plans
• 37 percent have taken a listed property off the market due to a slowdown in activity
• However, 52 percent are monitoring properties they want to purchase but are waiting to see if prices fluctuate as Brexit approaches
• Over half (56 percent) of investors have no faith that Boris Johnson will make a success of Brexit

When it comes to the property market, 37 percent of property investors say they have taken one or more listed properties off the market in the past year due to a slowdown in activity.

[perfectpullquote align=”right” bordertop=”false” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””]51 percent of the people surveyed said they believe there will be a surge in activity within the property market after 31 October[/perfectpullquote]

The majority of investors (52 percent) are actively monitoring potential property investments but are waiting to see if prices fluctuate as Brexit approaches. Indeed, 51 percent of the people surveyed said they believe there will be a surge in activity within the property market after 31 October.

In the long-term, investors are confident the real estate market will remain resilient despite Brexit uncertainty – only 31 percent think leaving the EU will negatively affect the value of their property portfolios.

Elsewhere, Experience Invest’s research claims that the fact interest rates have remained below 1 percent for the past decade has meant three-fifths of property investors (59 percent) are actively seeking ways to make their money work harder.

Jerald Solis, business development and acquisitions director at Experience Invest, said: “There has been a great deal of speculation about how Brexit will impact the UK’s property market. Since the referendum, however, while some parts of the market have slowed or dipped slightly, prices on the whole have held firm or, in many regions, risen steadily.

“Nevertheless, our research clearly shows many property investors are now adopting a ‘wait and see’ approach as the Brexit deadline draws near. And this means there could be a surge of activity once Brexit materialises; once the dust settles, investors are evidently preparing to spring back into life, which could result in far greater activity across the UK property market.”