Alan’s property of the month

King George’s Park, Rowhedge Village, Colchester

An attractive new development forming part of a larger regeneration scheme, which has proved popular with the Fund’s new residents.

City: King George’s Park, Rowhedge Village, Colchester

Type of homes: Terraced houses, 2 & 3 bedrooms

No of homes: 8

Built: 2018, forward-purchase

Discount negotiated: 9.3%

Net rental yield: 3.5%

What I liked about the Location

The Fund has investments in Colchester itself, and these have demonstrated the good local letting market. The existing investments are mostly flats and our Investment Plan indicated that investing in new houses in the same market would meet the investment objectives.

Colchester has good local employment opportunities and also an easy commute into London. Rowhedge is an attractive village beside the River Colne and provides a wide range of amenities including a primary school, doctors’ surgery, convenience stores and Post Office, village hall and pubs. The centre of Colchester and the station are less than 5 miles away and there are several bus routes serving the village.

What I liked about the properties

Hills Building Group have an excellent local reputation and operate an effective Sustainability Policy. The new houses have an EPC rating of B, the second highest, and will give warm, draft free living with low energy bills.

Buying early we were able to choose house types that we thought would be good for letting, and an attractive specification, as can be seen from the photographs of the show houses.

How has it gone so far?

Most importantly the houses have proved very popular with tenants, the first three were reserved over the first weekend, and all eight were let within 6 weeks of completion. Good houses get good tenants and we hope that with the good service from us and our property managers these will remain happy homes for many years. The rents are between £850 and £1,100 pcm which meets the investment objective comfortably.

Risk Warning:

Investing involves risk. Investors should be aware that the value of an investment and the income from it can fall as well as rise, and they may not receive back the full amount they invest. Past performance is not a reliable indicator of future results.
The Authorised Fund Manager is Thesis Unit Trust Management Limited, Exchange Building, St John’s Street, Chichester, West Sussex, PO19 1UP. Authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority.

Hearthstone Investments PLC is the parent company of the Hearthstone Investments Group. Regulated business is carried out by Hearthstone Asset Management Limited. Hearthstone Asset Management Limited is an appointed representative of Thesis Asset Management Limited which is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (114354).