Thanks to low property prices and a median monthly rent of £450, Middlesbrough is the current rental market hot spot, the property portal Zoopla has reported.

Rental properties in the town currently offer a gross yield of 7.7 per cent, said the firm. Yields in the ‘investor triangle’ of Sunderland, County Durham and Hartlepool are not far behind, all offering yields of over 7 per cent.

But five of the top ten UK yields hotspots are in Scotland, with East Ayrshire, North Ayrshire and Inverclyde all chalking up yields of 7.7 per cent, Glasgow City 7.6 per cent, and Stirling 7.5 per cent. 

While Scotland and the North East topped the polls with average yields of 7.3 per cent and 6.6 per cent, Wales ranked third place with yields of 6 per cent. Close behind was Yorkshire and The Humber with yields of 5.5 per cent and the West Midlands with yields of 5.4 per cent. 

At the other end of the spectrum, yields were lowest in the City of London at 3.1 per cent –  despite average monthly rents of £2,598. This was followed by Kensington and Chelsea, and the City of Westminster. 

‘With all the top ten hotspots being in northern England or Scotland, it is clear that the significantly lower house prices that characterise these areas, are playing a role in the higher yields generated for investors’, said Zoopla consumer spokesman Tom Parker. 

‘Yields are of course one consideration for investors and, for those considering their first foray into the buy to let market, it is worth considering house price growth forecasts for an area, and whether rents are likely to rise over time. With all those factors taken into account,  now could be a good time to invest or expand a portfolio, with investors able to benefit from the stamp duty holiday, paying only the 3 per cent levy until March 2021.”