City Centre

Birmingham’s 20-year ‘Big City Plan’, a radical overhaul of the city centre, will give back £2.1bn to the economy with new office, residential and recreational spaces to rival any of Europe’s best cities.  The growth of the city will be underpinned by the improvement of 65,000 square metres of public spaces, as well as huge investments into the unloved neighbourhoods on the outskirts of the City Core.

This visionary development of the West Midlands has already overseen a transformation of the Paradise and Arena Central development that has drawn in companies like PwC and HSBC, the latter setting up their UK HQ at One Centenary Square. However, a decade of investment is still to come. With HS2 and the regeneration of Smithfield and Digbeth still to come, the ground for investment is fertile for property investment over the mid-long term. We believe there remains a huge opportunity to ride the crest of Birmingham’s growth wave across Birmingham, and the city centre has pride of place at the nucleus of it all.

Why invest in Birmingham city centre?

• Average rental yields of 6.09%
• Average property price of £187,142
• 8% population growth since 2011
• Population of 1,240,000 by 2030

The UK’s leading region outside of London and the South-East for Foreign Direct Investment (FDI), it’s not hard to see the appeal for investors in Birmingham City Centre. Birmingham International Airport connects our city to fifty airlines operating 143 direct routes. Six universities educate our city’s 80,000 students. 5 Michelin-starred restaurants excite our palettes. It’s the home of HSBC’s UK headquarters and the 2022 Commonwealth Games. Major cultural institutions – orchestras, ballets, theatres and galleries – shake off our city’s industrial reputation to stretch our minds and inspire us for tomorrow.

In addition to what’s already here to be celebrated, £1.5bn of inward investment makes the case for investing in the city’s core offering even more credible, with price growth set to boom in line with the regeneration of the wider Smithfield, Digbeth and Eastside districts.

Paradise: Located between Chamberlain and Centenary Squares, Paradise is a transformational new project that combines a large, bright public space with state-of-the-art commercial and hospitality developments. Already host to multinational brand PwC, Paradise is set to become the new home for other global commercial leaders.

Arena Central: Overlooking Centenary Square, a highly-desirable location at the heart of the city centre, Arena Central is delivering 1.2 million square ft of mixed-use retail, leisure and commercial space, attracting global brands before it has even completed.

Grand Central: A recently completed renovation means Grand Central is now the perfect first impression for visitors to Birmingham. Home to New Street Station, one of the busiest rail lines in the UK with access to cities up and down the country, Grand Central also houses some of the top retailers in the country alongside exciting new restaurants and bars.

Understanding the demographic of tenants in an area is a great way to start your investment planning. Introducing Jack, a tenant in Birmingham city centre.

Jack lives in the city centre in one of Rotunda’s serviced apartments. He’s in his late 30’s and works in banking and finance on a salary of £70,000. He values his time more than anything and regards being at the epicentre of everything as essential. He’s occupying his apartment Monday to Friday, returning to the capital on the weekend to see his girlfriend. He’s keenly anticipating the development of HS2 as this will shorten his journey time considerably.

In his spare time Jack enjoys the finer things in life, like tailored suits and Japanese malt whisky. He stays updated via LinkedIn, with news about the industry as well as the individuals of note within it.

The short walks to high-end department stores such as Harvey Nichols and Selfridges within the city-centre are attractive. He relies on their in-store gifting services around notable birthdays in his calendar and Christmas, too. He’s also seen catching a blockbuster in style at Everyman cinema and sipping a Hibiki Harmony neat at The Ivy, a 6-minute walk from his apartment.