Manchester has recorded the strongest 10-year house price growth of any major British city, while Rightmove’s latest June index also showed asking prices edging lower month on month, giving landlords a sharper view of where long-run capital growth has held up better than the current market mood.
Rightmove said asking prices in Manchester had risen 63 percent over the past decade, from £160,422 to £261,891, the fastest growth among the cities it tracked. In the same release, the portal said average new seller asking prices dipped in June, adding another sign that near-term pricing remains softer even as some regional cities still look strong over a longer cycle.
For landlords and investors, that combination matters more than either headline on its own. The monthly dip points to a market that is still price-sensitive, but the 10-year city breakdown shows that lower-cost regional markets have delivered far stronger capital growth than London over the last cycle.
Rightmove says Greater Manchester has led the decade growth table
According to Rightmove, Manchester’s 63 percent rise put it ahead of the other major cities in its ranking, while London recorded the weakest 10-year growth at 7 percent despite remaining the most expensive market overall. Rightmove also said the four fastest-growing local areas over the period were all in Greater Manchester – Levenshulme, Atherton, Droylsden and Failsworth – each posting growth of about 80 percent.
Nathan Emerson, chief executive of Propertymark, said more affordable regional locations have had greater room for price growth, while higher-value markets such as London have faced tighter affordability ceilings. He added that jobs, infrastructure and local investment had also helped support stronger demand in cities such as Manchester.
This follows Residential Landlord’s recent reporting on landlords chasing stronger regional returns outside London. The new Rightmove figures push that same theme into the capital-growth conversation by suggesting investors who stayed focused on value-led northern markets have not just captured better yields in some cases, but stronger long-term price appreciation as well.
Rightmove’s underlying release is available via the full 10-year city house price analysis.
June price dip does not cancel the regional growth story
The monthly softening is still relevant. For landlords weighing purchases now, a weaker June market may improve negotiating conditions, especially where sellers are chasing ambitious prices in slower areas. But the longer-run lesson in Rightmove’s data is that investors should be careful about assuming the most expensive city will also deliver the best growth.
There is a warning here too. Strong historic growth in Manchester does not guarantee the next 10 years will look the same, particularly if affordability starts to tighten there as well. Even so, the latest split between Manchester and London is another reminder that landlords need to think in terms of local earnings, supply and investor entry prices – not just city prestige.
Opinion
Too many investors still talk about London as if it is the default benchmark for property success. Rightmove’s numbers suggest that mindset has already been outdated for years. If June’s softer market gives buyers more room to negotiate, the smarter move may be to look where growth has actually happened rather than where property has simply been expensive.
