Edinburgh has been rated the second most attractive city in the UK for property investors, according to a new study.
The Scottish city’s access to talent and vast green spaces saw it rank higher than Manchester.
However, London scored higher on innovation, transport connectivity, and infrastructure spending
M&G Real Estate’s City Vitality Index assessed eight metrics to quantify the attractiveness of 13 major UK cities to property investors.
For the first time since its inaugural CVI report in 2016, M&G included sustainability as one of the factors, measured in terms of the level of CO2 emissions per capita and mean level of pollutants.
It also looked at as demographics, connectivity, social ecology and innovation, cost competitiveness, sector concentration and supply side concentration.
Edinburgh and Glasgow stood out, achieving 49% and 32% of green space coverage respectively.
Edinburgh also performed well on its ability to attract and retain talent post-graduation. Overall, 59% of the working-age population in Edinburgh holds a degree-level qualification.
Both Manchester and Edinburgh scored highly on demographics. Similarly to London, they are expected to sustain strong population growth rates and to retain higher tenant demand in the coming years.
The report also found that investors are willing to accept lower yields in markets that are compensated by the fact they offer stronger vitality fundamentals.
Among the most liquid cities, London, Edinburgh and Manchester achieved the best vitality scores while offering attractive yields at 4.75% (Edinburgh and Manchester) and 3.8% (central London).
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