It is no surprise that there is a great deal of demand for property in Greater Manchester with Stockport being just one of the many towns in need of new and affordable homes. The recent M60 Towns Development Conference raised a number of issues with particular relevance to the Stockport property market.
Cllr Richard Farnell, who is currently the leader of Rochdale Council, spoke about the available land for building homes and that while brownfield development should be the focus, there isn’t enough of this type of land to satisfy the demand. Farnell said; “70% of land identified for housing is in the urban area; there is not enough brownfield land to meet all our needs therefore we will have to look to the green belt too.”
Greenbelt discussions still rage on in Stockport
While these remarks were made by someone with a focus on Rochdale, there is undoubtedly an element of truth and relevance with respect to Stockport too. There is a high level of demand for property in Stockport and there have been moves to build on greenbelt areas in the town. There have been many protests against this plan, which have halted work, but in the long term, it may be that there is no other option but to build in this manner. Clearly there will be a lot of difficult decisions to be made with respect to housing in and around Stockport.
Of particular interest to Stockport given recent property announcement was the call made by Charles Smith, in the role of Principal Heritage Advisor at Historic England. Alongside Stephanie Hiscott, the pair talked about the importance of former textile mills and the role they can play in meeting the needs of the North. It was highlighted that there are over 520 historic mills in the Greater Manchester area and it was suggested that mills could offer up to 50,000 homes in the area. This opinion chimes with the development of Meadow Mill in Stockport, which looks bringing in a range of property options to the area.
There is also some jealousy raised at the developments and growth experienced in South Manchester. This has been put down to the importance of Manchester Airport and the reputation that has been developed by Cheshire. While you wouldn’t say that these two factors have been hugely influential in the development of Stockport, there is no doubt that there has been some knock-on impact of the overall area being on the rise.
These comments give confidence that Stockport isn’t in bad shape at this point in time. At Spencer Harvey, we are delighted to say that we are happy to discuss the Stockport property market with anyone so if you want to find out more, come and see us or arrange an appointment.