The Intermediary – January 2026 - Flipbook - Page 83
L O C A L FO C U S
Hull
lenders are popular. She says: “We’ve
seen an increase in recommendations
for lenders such as Barclays,
Nationwide, and NatWest.
“This is oen due to their higher
maximum working age limits for
earned income, strong affordability
assessments, flexible stance on minor
credit issues, and competitive interest
rates.”
She adds that the buy-to-let space
shows its own paern, with a growing
reliance on The Mortgage Works “due
to their flexible approach to larger
portfolios and limited company
structures,” while “BM Solutions
and Virgin Money have also become
popular choices” among smaller
landlords seeking favourable stress
tests and pragmatic criteria.
For Green, the dominance of
high-street names is even more
pronounced, largely because his client
base is heavily first-time-buyer led.
“We have a lot of our cases go
with the high street big names like
Nationwide due to their helping hand
scheme but also their cashback for
first-time buyers which helps them
offset solicitor costs on completion,”
he explains.
“As most of our client work is
fairly ‘vanilla’ […] most of our work
is done purely on sourcing. So, the
lenders who sit top of the sourcing list.
Barclays have repriced in recent weeks
and have sat at the top of the list for a
while now, along with Halifax.”
Green notes that his clients’
jobs also influence lender choice.
He says: “Due to my background in
professional sport, we get a lot of
professional rugby league players,
and we use Halifax a lot with them
due to their criteria around fixed term
contracts.”
Upcoming developments
In terms of property development,
Hull’s regeneration story continues
to gather momentum, supported by a
steady pipeline of new-build activity
and large-scale infrastructure works.
Newly built homes in the postcode
area now average £247,000, with prices
up 4% year-on-year, and development
activity remains concentrated in key
hotspots such as HU17 0 – where 119
new homes were sold between October
2024 and September 2025. Much of
this momentum is being driven by
ambitious masterplans across the city.
As Cunningham explains: “There are
several exciting new developments
proposed in Hull that reflect the city’s
ongoing growth and regeneration.”
She highlights the East Bank Urban
Village, which “aims to deliver 850
new homes over the next 15 years.” She
also points to Beal Homes’ Suon-onHull scheme, set to deliver 418 homes
ranging from starter properties to
larger detached houses, as well as the
Dane Park Road Development, which
will bring forward 99 affordable
homes by spring 2027.
Infrastructure investment is equally
significant. Cunningham notes that
“the most notable project underway
is the A63 Castle Street improvement
scheme,” a major upgrade designed to
improve local traffic flow and boost
freight efficiency to and from the Port
of Hull.
Meanwhile, shiing dynamics in
the student accommodation sector are
also reshaping future demand. Green
explains that the market is likely to
see a dip in private student lets as the
University of Hull expands its oncampus provision.
He says: “The Lawns has been
bought for redevelopment with
the intention of modernising the
huge building to house 970 students
again. These two huge sites will
provide thousands of students
with more modern and convenient
accommodation compared to private
accommodation further away from
the university campus.”
Rental demand
Hull’s rental and buy-to-let market
remains a distinctive part of the
local housing landscape, shaped by
strong yields and a private rental
stock (24.3%) that sits slightly above
the national average of 23.6%. As
Green puts it: “Buy-to-let has always
remained strong in Hull due to the
high yields investors can secure here,”
noting that a typical two-bed terraced
house achieves a rental income of
£600 per calendar month (pcm).
While high interest rates in 2022
and 2023 cooled activity among local
landlords, Green says there was “an
increase in put of town investors
who were still happy to invest in high
yielding areas away from home. Puing
their money into a property with a lower
yield that normal was more beneficial
than leing it erode in the bank with
inflation in double digits.”
Yet beneath the appeal of these
Hull
Residents
467k
Average age
41.5
Average property price
£195k
Hull postcode area.
Source: www.plumplot.co.uk
returns, the market is becoming more
polarised. Cunningham reports “a
noticeable decline in enquiries for new
buy-to-let purchases,” even as interest
grows among those exploring limited
company structures for tax efficiency.
Lenders, she notes, are widening
their offerings in response.
At the same time, many longstanding landlords are beginning to
exit the sector altogether.
She says: “This trend is largely
driven by increased tax burdens and
reduced reliefs, rising regulation,
financial risks associated with high
interest rates and rent arrears,
and growing legal and liability
concerns, all contributing to reduced
profitability in the sector.”
Increasing activity
Hull’s housing market may still be
working through the aershocks
of economic turbulence, but the
direction of travel is clear. Activity is
broadening, confidence is rebuilding
and both advisers and clients are
adapting to new lending norms,
whether through later-life borrowing,
capital-raising remortgages, or more
flexible routes onto the ladder.
Against this backdrop, broker
and borrower sentiment is quietly
but steadily improving. As Green
surmises: “The numerous drops in the
base rate and the positivity this has
brought have encouraged buyers to
take that first step. This year has been
our busiest yet.” ●
January 2026 | The Intermediary
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