Future trends in P2P property lending
In a post-pandemic, post-Brexit world, the peer-to-peer property lending sector will look a little bit different.
Already, a number of trends are starting to emerge, and some P2P lending platforms have chipped in with their own predictions on what the future may bring for P2P property lenders.
Here are just a few of the most intriguing trend forecasts…
P2P residential mortgages
Since early 2019, JustUs has been trying to tap into the vast residential mortgage market, only to be stymied by strict regulations. However, P2P residential mortgages could soon become a reality.
Earlier this year, JustUs won the regulatory permissions that it needed from the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) to offer personal mortgages, and founder Lee Birkett has said that his platform will start offering owner-occupied residential mortgages from the new year.
JustUs’ mortgage offering would have a 2.5 per cent fixed interest rate for borrowers, making it one of the most competitive mortgages on the market.
Ex-London focus
More and more platforms have been shifting their focus away from London in recent years. The likes of The House Crowd, Blend, and Wellesley have all espoused the benefits of regions such as the Midlands and the North East, where property values are rising faster, and average rental yields are higher than they are in the capital.
Recently, online property lender LendInvest forecast that Covid-19 will only add to the many opportunities for property investors looking across the Midlands, South West and South Wales.
“With commuting cheaper, more are willing to rent and live further afield, increasing yields for landlords,” said LendInvest business development manager Nigel Robbins.
“The abundance of university cities like Cardiff, Exeter, Bristol, Bath, Plymouth and Birmingham also means a high demand for rental properties and for new projects to expand the pool of student housing.”
Warehouse finance
The rise of online shopping has opened up a potentially lucrative new property investment market – warehouse finance.
Proplend has highlighted a particular need for cold storage solutions which can be used by grocery suppliers to stockpile and deliver food to households.
“Refrigerated storage has become an integral part of the supply chain when it comes to the manufacturing, transporting and storing of temperature sensitive products,” the platform wrote in a recent blog post.
“It’s a niche sector of the warehouse and logistics market and there is growing demand from both tenants and investors.”
Airspace development
In a look ahead to 2021, CrowdProperty identified airspace property development as an emerging market for alternative lenders.
Airspace development involves building up, as opposed to out. It is becoming increasingly common in university towns and in city centres, as a relatively cost effective way to produce more housing.
The government recently introduced new permitted development rights allowing property owners to build on top of existing sites, which makes this segment of the property market ideal for risk-aware investors.
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