We’re in unprecedented times, with arguably the highest levels of economic uncertainty and lowest levels of political confidence in the UK since the Credit Crunch – particularly given the growing talk of, and preparations for, No Deal.
Against such a backdrop one may expect to see panic in business, heavy reductions in investment and borrowing, planning in place for austerity even.
However, despite some signs of caution, businesses in the North are clearly not adopting the ‘batten down the hatches’ mentality, but rather ‘steady ahead’.
Evidence is abundant that many sectors are prospering.
Property investment in the North West last year reached £3.17bn, its highest since 2007 according to commercial and residential real estate consultancy Lambert Smith Hampton.
At Together we continue to adopt our prudent ‘common sense’ approach, but are also seeing overwhelming optimism and achieved a record month in June with lending at nearly £200m for the month, our loan book stands at £3.47bn.
Our customers are cautiously optimistic about the medium and long term view, they see value in acquiring at the right price despite the economic and political uncertainty.
We are seeing plenty of purchase and re-fi activity not only in the major cities but also across the wider North West region as a whole.
We are growing our team of property lending specialists to accommodate the growth we are seeing and the recent hires of Alex Bodie and Alex Garland to our team, evidences the commitment that we are making to supporting our customers’ aspirations.
Clearly there’s confidence, and the region’s business position can get stronger still – backed by the government’s Northern Powerhouse initiative driving investment in skills, innovation and culture.
This confidence and potential is not just localised, it has been boosted by outside investment too.
The purchase of Manchester’s Midland Hotel by overseas investor Pandox AB for £115m is one example; Barings Real Estate’s purchase of Glenbrook build-to-let schemes in Liverpool and Manchester for £104m another.
Coupled to that is the strengthening of the regional transport infrastructure - Manchester Airport is undergoing a £1bn transformation, John Lennon Airport boasted its highest number of passengers for seven years, thanks to public and private investment.
