Many economists now predict that rising inflation could surpass 10% in 2022, contributing to the heaviest pressure on UK living standards in decades. With the consumer price index hitting 9% in April, inflation could continue to climb further in the coming months with many days to day living costs rising even higher.
This has led to Iceland offering a 10% discount to the over 65s in an attempt to help affordability for a historically vulnerable socioeconomic group.
Last month saw the end of the energy price cap. This along with a planned increase to the National Insurance rate, which is intended to help fund the current NHS shortfall, will impact disposable incomes in the UK.
Chancellor Rishi Sunak has previously claimed the government is currently doing what it can to support those families hit the hardest around the UK. One measure currently being rolled out is the government’s planned energy top up, which will offer millions of households up to £350 in energy bill contributions. The project aims to disperse a further £20bn over the next 18 months in a bid to backstop the growing squeeze.
Attempts to fight rising inflation
Whilst rising inflation is a problem facing many UK residents, there are some innovative ways to combat this trend. An increasingly popular option is to take advantage of the strong returns made possible through property investment. The right developments can provide investors with a high yield and superb capital growth.
The UK is currently seeing huge demand for residential property investments across the north of England from investors based in the South and from overseas. This is primarily due to lower entry levels in cities such as Manchester, Liverpool, and Birmingham. The top performing city is Manchester. This has seen some of the huge house price increases, with supply still falling far short of demand.
Manchester’s local authority is indicating that the local population is estimated to grow by a further 10% before 2034. To support this demand, Manchester council have ambitious plans to invest in the surrounding boroughs in a bid to help establish a solid supply of diverse housing options. With projects such as Atom Valley, Manchester’s equivalent to California’s Silicon Valley in the early stages of approval, the sky’s the limit for the city over the coming decade. Other growth areas include towns which are a striking distance from Manchester. Oldham has been a big winner over the past 12 months.