Tax breaks boost the market

A new demand is emerging for freehold pubs and bars outside that of owner operators and pub companies. It seems individual 'buy to let' investors are looking to extend their portfolio, with many utilising private pension tax breaks.

With the housing market having achieved a soft landing and prices now bouncing back, yields - the return on money invested in property - are at an all time low of around three to four per cent. This is due to a reduction in rents achieved as a result of increased supply. Meanwhile, house prices have continued to rise.

Similarly, the mainstream commercial property market - offices, industrial and retail - has also experienced a boom in demand over recent years, particularly from private pension investors.

Again, the consequence of prices rising faster than rents has resulted in reduced yields, commonly now seen at around five to six per cent.

This squeeze on yields - calculated by dividing the annual rent by the value of the property - in the residential and conventional commercial markets has prompted investors to explore other areas of property investment.

Overseas property has certainly been one of them, and now, with increasing regularity, pubs are blazing brightly on the property investment radar.

Why? Well, a pub bought for £500,000 and leased with a rent of £37,500 produces a yield of 7.5 per cent; a pub at £395,000 with a rent of £32,500 produces eight per cent and buying a pub for £650,000 and leasing it at £58,500 per annum produces a whopping nine per cent - up to three times that of a house and one and-a-half times that of a typical commercial investment.

So, are pubs the next big thing on the private investor 'buy to let' scene? I think the numbers speak for themselves.