Real Estate | 18 August 2022

A resilient service to help you take advantage of a robust property market

Property in Jersey continues to perform, so what are the best ways to access and benefit from such a strong market?

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As a means to securing your wealth, property remains as good an option as it’s ever been. Nowhere is this more applicable than on Jersey, which has seen significant sustained uplifts of residential properties, with activity rising 39% in the 12 months to March 2022. The island has also seen a 16% rise over the previous year on top of significant consecutive year on year gains, according to the Government of Jersey’s own statistics.

Though the UK has also seen rises, Jersey has not been historically exposed to the same volatility in the residential market as the mainland. A local estate agent recently told the press “I have been doing this for 40 years and through four or five recessions. The Jersey market has never crashed”.

There are several reasons for that says RBSI & NatWest International Real Estate Finance Director Jamie Soulsby. “There is potential investment value on Jersey due to limited supply, location and the unique characteristics of the island including a sustained strong economy,” he says. “Like any market it has sensitivities but also a robustness you might not find in other places when it comes to property. Though past performance does not guarantee future performance, experience to date is, typically, Jersey property doesn’t go down.”

“In addition to that, Jersey and our Channel Island neighbours are simply a great place to live, whether you’re looking for an investment to buy or for a new home – although there are local housing qualifications that you may need to meet.”

Working within the NatWest Group, Jamie is part of the only specialist real estate finance team on the island. His expertise is available to Coutts Crown Dependencies clients, giving them access to decades of working knowledge and a network of external contacts.

 

No bank is an island

As part of the wider banking group, incorporating Coutts, NatWest, RBS, Ulster Bank and Isle of Man Bank, Jamie’s team also have access to an extensive UK network with localised property expertise in every region. 

“We seek to provide a bespoke approach to debt structuring to suit individual requirements and the proposition before us rather than a one size fits all methodology,” he says.

This includes the ability to use gearing up loans to release liquidity from existing properties in order to improve them or to create capacity add to their investment portfolio. If a client is also looking to make a buy to let property investment, they can also access a specific finance offering to enable this.

Other bespoke complimentary structuring can also help clients looking to move fast in the competitive Jersey property market. For example, using pre-agreed loan facilities against their investment portfolio with Coutts Crown Dependencies – a form of financing unavailable for property purchases in the UK.

 

Unique knowledge

When it comes to Jersey, Jamie emphasises the importance of the team’s knowledge of the different property sectors and relative merits from a debt provision perspective: “We’re very much a service that values long-term relationships and partnerships to help clients achieve their property investment goals and help navigate the unique respective processes when it comes to buying on Jersey,” he says.

Coutts Crown Dependencies clients are able to benefit from all these services with the knowledge they’ll be buying an asset in a residential market that has seen an average 4% yearly increase over the last 20 years. Though, just as important is the peace of mind such service can bring to your purchase, whether you have an eye on the future or for making a new home today.

Whether you’re already a client or thinking of becoming one, you can speak to our
Coutts Crown Dependencies team today. 

* Subject to meeting local housing qualifications and the ability to buy in the island

Property investments can go up or down and past performance is no guarantee of future performance and investors should undertake their own due diligence and be comfortable around the risks and implications relevant in each case and personal circumstances.

This article is for discussion purposes only and does not constitute a commitment by the Bank to lend.