Chinese and Hong Kong buyers purchased around 35,000 homes in Liverpool, worth an estimated £8.75bn, between 2017 and 2021, a study has found.

Liverpool One shopping centre

The study by Beauchamp Estates, in partnership with Logic Estates, found there had been a 160% rise in Chinese and Hong Kong buyers purchasing homes in Liverpool over the five-year period. It found properties in Liverpool sold for an average of £237/sq ft, compared with £678/sq ft in London, £353/sq ft in Manchester and £300/sq ft in Birmingham.
Beauchamp Estates said that buyers from China and Hong Kong with a budget of £1.5m to invest would typically be able to purchase one apartment in prime central London or five or six apartments in Liverpool. Regional cities such as Manchester and Birmingham also offer price and size advantages over London, which is why there has been a dramatic increase in investors buying UK real estate in regional cities, the study said. 
Of the homes in Liverpool linked to Chinese/Hong Kong residents, 27,600 (worth £6.9bn) are either buy-to-let investment units purchased or investment properties rented to Chinese and Hong Kong students and business people. Around 7,400 homes, worth £1.85bn, are owner-occupier or pied-à-terre units used by either Chinese/Hong Kong nationals or descendants who are now naturalised British-passport holders.
Chinese and Hong Kong investors have been attracted to Liverpool by price performance and attractive yields, the study said. Liverpool has seen annual price growth of 14%, compared with 5.1% for London, 6.7% for Manchester and 7% for Birmingham. Likewise, rental yields in Liverpool are 6% for a one-bed apartment and 6.5% for a two-bed apartment, which is higher than in London, Manchester and Birmingham.
Jeremy Gee, managing director of Beauchamp Estates, said: “Our new survey shows that over the last five years, mainland Chinese and Hong Kong investors buying residential property in the UK have expanded beyond London to invest in Liverpool, Manchester and Birmingham.”
He added there had been a “massive wave of Asian inward investment” into Liverpool. “Buy-to-let units in Liverpool are often 60%-plus cheaper than their equivalents in London and up to double the size,” said Gee.