Location, Location, Location? 

How important is the location when purchasing and renting out a property? Well, it used to be that when it came to property it's location, location, location! With the most important aspect  being convenience. For example If your property was in the middle of a field with nothing nearby, you were unlikely to get much interest. But if it was in the centre of town near shops, travel hubs and offices, you’d have people clammering to stay there, no matter the size or state of the property! To some extent this is still true, however, things may be changing… 

When the Covid19 pandemic hit, many people were suddenly not allowed to go to work in an office due to social distancing laws. This meant that a lot of cmpanies had to adapt very quckly and find ways to enable their staff to work remotely from home. Employees and employers quickly realised that this method of work not only worked but in many cases actually improved productivity and staff well being! According the office of national statistics, the number of jobs being advertised online as “remote” or “homeworking" increased by 307% between February and May 2021! 

That’s a crazy stat! But, what does it have to do with property? Well if people have to commute to work they tend to try and find somewhere near to the office to live. However, when people no longer need to go “in” to work they also don’t necessarily need to worry about living close to their place of work, meaning the location of their property will become a far less important factor. The impact of this on the property industry is massive! It means that the value of property is far less dependant on location features such as being “right next to the town centre” or having “the train station right on your doorstep”. In the past people would be far more likely to move into a smaller flat in a “great location” than a larger flat on the outskirts because it was more conviniet for their daily commute, not anymore! Now that’s not to say that a lot of people do still need to commute it just goes to show that times are changing, with a vista of new opportunities for more secluded accomodation. 

Obviously location will alwys play some sort of role in the property industry, as there is more to it than the morning commute, perhaps this is just a short term phase, or perhaps people will need to find new benefits to living in one location over another. A lot of people now check what the average internet speeds are in an area before moving, maybe that will be the new mos important aspect of the location? it’s hard to know exactly what will happen next but I can say with certaintly that it’s an exciting time to be in the property business!