Over the last 20 years land has risen by over 900% and for each of the last 5 years land as an investment has outperformed the more traditional markets such as stocks and shares, as well as the housing market.

'Between 40 to 60% of the value of a house is the land on which it sits' 

The case for land has recently been highlighted by the acute housing shortage and the need for the Government to build 4.2 million homes by 2020. However, even if this target is to be met the UK is set to increase in the next 10 years as much as it has in the past 30, and within the next 25 years the UK will have added the equivalent of the population of Belgium, therefore making land a highly desirable commodity.  

Key Facts

Housing experts claim that house-building needs to increase by 33% from the current 154,000 a year to 220,000 a year to meet the rising demand, or the country faces spiraling homelessness and overcrowding. If building levels remain as they are there will be a shortfall of 1.4 million homes in 15 years. About 160,000 houses were built in 1950, rising to 291,000 in 1970. But this fell gradually to 135,000 in 2000, increasing only last year to more than 150,000.

The predicted explosion in households is due mainly to more people remaining single, rising divorce rates and older people living on their own rather than in nursing homes. However, nearly a quarter of the new households are due to increases in immigration. There has never been a better time to buy land.

Source: The Times Online