| dc.description.abstract | The UK is facing an ongoing housing crisis, characterized by rapidly rising house prices,
affordability concerns, and significant regional disparities. While much academic research
has focused on the South of England, particularly London, this research investigates how
foreign corporate investment has influenced housing market dynamics in Northern England
between 2010 and 2019. This research uses a quantitative research design, based on an
administrative dataset on property ownership by overseas companies. Using a fixed effects
panel regression on the 72 local authorities of Northern England, this research models the
effect of lagged foreign investment on three key housing market outcomes: house price
levels, house price growth, and housing affordability. Descriptive analysis maps and explores
geographical patterns. The results show that foreign corporate investment has a small but
statistically significant positive effect on house price levels. This effect is particularly visible
after 2014, a period marked by rising house prices and foreign investor interest shifting to the
North. No significant effect on house price growth and affordability is found. Lastly, foreign
investment is highly concentrated in urban centres, especially Manchester and Salford. The
geographical concentration of investment in a few urban areas raises concerns about
growing intra-regional inequalities. | |
