Darlington is well positioned for Growth
There are some areas of the North East that are better positioned for growth than others. Darlington is the largest town in County Durham and its location means that it has a lot of opportunities that other North East towns would die for.
Having good knowledge of the North East and knowing what is happening in the area is a big advantage. Many investors take a chance or do a little bit of research. You must look at the bigger picture to get an idea of what is going to happen over the next five to ten years. Here is what my local knowledge has come up with.
Credit: Towntalk
Heathrow 3rd Runway:
You might think I have gone mad Heathrow is down south. Yes, but Darlington has its own airport. I know it’s called Durham Tees Valley (Although I cannot understand why) but it really is Darlington. The news of the third runway was welcomed by businesses in the North East. Presently you must fly into Newcastle then take an hour’s road journey to Darlington.
Darlington will benefit with more daily flights into Heathrow. It will open the DTV airport to more customers.
Hitachi:
The new manufacturing and assembly plant in Newton Aycliffe, on the outskirts of Darlington is being developed to support the Department for Transport-led Intercity Express Programme and future Hitachi Rail projects.
Key benefits are:
- 730 new jobs created, including skilled and semiskilled technical roles for apprentices and graduates
- 35 vehicles can be manufactured each month
- Production capability includes: high-speed trains, commuter trains and metro trains
- £82 million investment, plant fully owned by Hitachi Rail Europe
- 2017: first trains from the factory enter service on the Great Western Main Line
- The trains will be manufactured in the UK for use across the UK and Europe
More local businesses will benefit from the local supply chain which will create more jobs. This has been proved in Sunderland with Nissan where there is a sizeable nearby supply chain of manufacturers producing parts.
Credit: Hitachi
Road & Rail Improvements.
Works to upgrade the A1 from Leeming to Scotch Corner by replacing the existing dual carriageway with a new 3 lane motorway. This will benefit Darlington given its location as the first North East major town when traveling North. New road links on the A66 towards Darlington and Middlesbrough have already been built.
Rail links to Teesside will be transformed by an ambitious multi-million-pound redevelopment of Darlington station. The station – which provides the hub for Teesside’s main rail link to London – is set to introduce dedicated platforms for local connections and future high speed services. Please click on the link below to see the plan.
Credit: Tees Business
New Housing
I always get excited when I drive around and see new housing developments. You might think that more properties will make the existing market weaker. I don’t see it like that. I see it stronger. I see an area undergoing big infrastructure changes as been a good area to invest in. More jobs equal more homes required. It’s a snowball effect. On my travels, I can see that there are a lot of new homes being built in Darlington. And the good news is that there is a lot more land available for building in the area.
I could list loads of new housing, commercial and retail developments that are either under construction. have been approved or are being proposed some of which are large projects, but that would take up many pages. Please look yourself. Just Google – Darlington housing developments and see the amount of for yourself.
Credit: Foreconsulting.co.uk
Summary
I believe Darlington is going to offer investors a fantastic opportunity. Many Buy to Let investments in the town are offering yields of over 10%. But that is not all the picture. With an influx of new workers and contractors there is going to great opportunities for HMO’s, Multi lets, Serviced Accommodation and Property Development. The growth in Darlington will be long term and now that prices remain low in that area it is time for investors to take a closer look. We certainly will be!