Students bring buy-to-let gains

People looking to get into buy-to-let investment in university towns have been told which locations offer the best rental profits.

According to PrimeLocation, Coventry, Teeside and Chester offer the best rental returns.

For example, the average cost of a property in Coventry is £98,138 – well below the national average – yet landlords can expect to make a rent of £570 on such properties, a rental yield of 7 per cent. In Teeside, landlords can expect a yield of 6.9 per cent, and in Chester 6.8 per cent.

However, three of the UK's top university cities – Cambridge, Oxford and St Andrews – sit far down the tables of best investment opportunities, taking 58th, 77th and 79th places respectively for rental yield. "Tuition fees are up to £9,000 a year and the cost of accommodation at university is eye-wateringly high. While this is good news for landlords, it may also lead many parents to wonder if they should join the buy-to-let boom and purchase a home for their child" Nigel Lewis, pictured, from PrimeLocation said.