Did you know that Brighton & Hove, one of the most vibrant cities in Europe, has been identified as a future Supercity by HSBC?

Brighton & Hove has the right infrastructure to transform into a booming Supercity economy - the city is poised to capitalise on the rise of new breeds of entrepreneurs.  Colin Monk, Pro-Vice Chancellor Marketing and Business, Brighton University believes that Brighton & Hove's creative, dynamic environment is vital to advancing the growth businesses of today and the new industries of tomorrow.

A few more reasons why Brighton & Hove is the place to invest ...

The UK Land Registry's most recent figures highlight Brighton & Hove as the county which experienced the highest annual price change in March 2010, with a movement of 13.7 per cent.

Austin Gray, the largest independent property auctioneers in Sussex, reports that their March 5th 2010 auction in Brighton & Hove was the third most successful in their 30 years of conducting auctions in Sussex with a sale total of just shy of £4 million and their sale the following month followed this trend.

The inaugural Brighton Marathon in April 2010 gave the city a multi-million pound boost with over 80,000 spectators pouring onto the city streets and set new standards for this type of event.  One of Britain's greatest athletes, Olympic legend Steve Ovett, who flew in from Australia especially to officially start the first ever marathon in his home town declared that the long trip was definitely worth it.  Brighton Marathon 2011 is going to be even bigger and better - you'll have to move fast to guarantee yourself a precious starting spot!

With just two years until the London Olympics, Brighton & Hove City Council is working hard to achieve lasting benefits for the city and to provide increased opportunities for tourism and business.  The economic legacy will be developed through creating and promoting new market opportunities and by building on Brighton & Hove's business strengths and visitor economy.  Yellowave, the Beach Volleyball venue on Brighton seafront has been accepted as an official pre-training camp site for London 2012.  The Olympics provide an extra reason to consider property investment - previous host countries have seen property prices soar.

Bupa International, providers of health insurance to people working outside their country of origin, has agreed a new 15 year lease on over 4,000 square meters of office space near Brighton railway station.  The new MD of Bupa committed the company to the city, citing its highly qualified workforce as a major factor and confirmed that Bupa would not be leaving Brighton & Hove - the city is just so popular with its staff.

Tourism bosses have secured another cash boost for Brighton & Hove worth millions - beating competition from home and abroad to secure 4 conferences worth over £3 million to the city.  The head of VisitBrighton confirmed that conferences and events are very important to the local economy, bringing between £180 and £200 million into the city each year.

MOST CLOUDS HAVE A SILVER LINING
Andrew Boyle MD Town & Country Property Services (RDA's Letting Agents)

The 'recession' of late 2008 and 2009 hit virtually everyone in some way or another and the stories of mass job losses were worrying not just for the people who might lose them but also Landlords who might be facing non payment of their rent.  Although this scenario did not happen to anywhere near the extent some feared, it did have the effect of many people putting their plans on hold to wait and see what happened and this did impinge on the rental market with slow activity from tenants looking to move and Landlords entering the market or adding to their portfolio.

However now that things are a lot clearer the rental market in Brighton & Hove, which has always been buoyant, has returned to normal but with an extra bonus for Landlords.  One of the reasons younger tenants rent is to save for a deposit to buy.  With banks having tightened their criteria for lending and requiring larger deposits many of them have given up the thought, certainly for the foreseeable future, of buying and will remain in the rental market.  This has led to tenants who would have come out of the sector continuing to rent leading to an acute shortage of rental properties available - we normally have about 3% of our portfolio available at any one time for rent, now it is less than 1% and many prospective tenants are finding it increasingly difficult to obtain suitable accommodation.  We have also seen a steady influx of people who work in London but are fed up with the hustle and bustle of living there - Brighton is not known as 'London By The Sea' for nothing - it has all the ingredients they want with all its clubs, theatres, restaurants etcetera, etcetera but without the problems associated with London living and being only 50 minutes by train it makes a great 'lifestyle' change.

Astute Asian investors have been taking advantage of the weaker sterling by buying up blocks of apartments in Brighton & Hove - where there is a proven record of strong capital appreciation - secure in the knowledge that their investment is being managed by RDA's comprehensive property investment service.

So whether you just want to get a foot in the property market, add to your existing Brighton portfolio or take that extra step and purchase a whole block - allow RDA to take away all your management concerns and sit back and watch your investment grow.

Contact us to start your new journey in Brighton & Hove - the city of opportunity !