South Yorkshire is a metropolitan county with a population of 1.34 million (2011 census). It has four metropolitan boroughs, Rotherham, Sheffield, Barnsley and Doncaster with other notable places being Grimethorpe, Armthorpe, Bawtry, Hoyland, Chapeltown, Mexborough and Penistone. Apart from its historic towns and cities, it’s renowned for its moorlands and rolling hills including the Peak District National Park. Tourism as well as the creative and service industries have replaced the dominant heavy industries of the past. For Yorkshire as a whole, it’s been predicted that to 2021 house prices could rise as much as 13%.
Doncaster Sheffield Airport is centrally located and within easy reach from a number of locations. Other airports outside the borough but easy to get to are Manchester Airport, East Midlands Airport and Leeds Bradford Airport. There are excellent rail and bus routes with Sheffield being a major transport hub. Major rail lines pass through the county offering relatively quick journey times to the north of England and Scotland as well as to London. The M1 also passes through the county as does the A1(M) and M18.
Major house builders such as Redrow and Taylor Wimpey are active in the region building many new home developments. Persimmon Homes alone has new build developments in no less than 26 locations in South Yorkshire. Meanwhile, The South Yorkshire Housing Association has good value new home developments especially around Sheffield and Maltby. This includes new houses available to buy under the shared ownership scheme. Retirement properties are also available.
Sheffield with its large student population remains a particularly good investment location for a buy to let mortgage. The growing gap between wages and house prices is apparent in many South Yorkshire areas which adds to rental demand. For other investment opportunities, there are new homes for sale in and around Doncaster at excellent value prices. You can gain ownership of a new build studio apartment for as little as £65,000.