Major sporting venues bring gold for buy-to-let investors

The latest market insight from London's largest lettings and sales estate agent brand*, Foxtons, has revealed that rental properties within arm's reach of one of the capital's major sporting venues are putting in a stronger performance for buy-to-let investors when compared to the boroughs in which they are located.

Foxtons analysed current market data on both rental and house price values across 14 postcodes home to a major London sporting venue, revealing the yield on offer to buy-to-let investors and how this yield compares to the wider borough*.

We've already been treated to a sizzling summer of sport, but with the election now and done and dusted, it's the UK property market that is ready and set to put in a strong performance over the coming months.

The figures from Foxtons show that the average rental yield found across the 14 postcodes home to a major sporting venue comes in at 4.8%. This is 0.5% higher than the average rental yield of 4.3% found across the 14 wider boroughs in which these sporting venues are found.

But which sporting venue takes gold when it comes to the buy-to-let returns on offer to landlords?

At 6.9%, Lord's Cricket Ground stands at the top of the podium with the highest rental yield of the lot. What's more, it also boasts the strongest performance versus the wider borough, with the average rental yield coming in 3.1% higher than the 3.8% found across Westminster as a whole.

In a close second place, the Oval Cricket Ground currently offers up an average yield of 6.8%, some 1.9% higher than the wider borough of Lambeth, whilst Tottenham Hotspur Stadium takes bronze with an average yield of 6.5%, sitting 2.1% above the wider average yield found in Haringey.

Wembley Stadium and Crystal Palace also rank high when it comes to highest sporting venue yields at 5.5% and 5% respectively.

While the average yield may be lower around Twickenham Stadium at 4.7%, it sits 1.5% higher than the wider borough of Richmond, with only Lord's, the Oval and Tottenham Stadium outperforming their wider boroughs by a greater margin.

But it's not just superior rental yields on offer around the capital's major sporting venues, landlords can also benefit from a greater degree of capital appreciation. Over the last year, postcodes home to a major sporting venue have seen property values increase by an average of 0.7%.

Although this may not seem like a notable rate of growth, house prices across the wider boroughs in which these sporting venues are found have fallen by an average of -3.8% during the same period.

Foxtons CEO, Guy Gittins, commented:

"We're certainly a nation of sport lovers and this love has only grown in recent years as sport has become more inclusive and accessible. It's this inclusivity that makes London such a great city for hosting major sporting events and we're now seeing a range of foreign imports such as the NFL, NBA and MLB make London a permanent fixture in their sporting calendars.

This has led to a great deal of ongoing investment into major sporting venues and as well as the facilities themselves, this brings many additional improvements to the surrounding area and the local infrastructure.

This benefits both the housing and rental markets, helping to boost supply and demand, which in turn ensures a strong rate of house price growth and superior yields for buy-to-let investors."