The South West’s property and construction industry is among the most confident in the UK, according to a new report by accountancy group Smith & Williamson.
The firm’s annual survey of more than 200 property and construction professionals revealed a rise in confidence over the past 12 months, with 84% of South West-based respondents feeling optimistic about their business prospects in 2016 compared to 61% nationwide. 
Paul Bray, pictured, a partner in Smith & Williamson’s Bristol office and part of the firm’s property and construction group, said: “A number of exciting developments such as the projects underway at Bristol’s Temple Quarter Enterprise Zone and Weston Gateway Business Park close to the Weston-super-Mare M5 junction, and the announcement of the go-ahead for a new £24.5bn nuclear power station at Hinkley Point, are almost certainly contributing to strong levels of confidence in the South West property market.
“With more speculative development and investment activity on the cards as well as growing demand from businesses looking to expand or relocate to Bristol and other regional towns and cities, the outlook for 2016 is increasingly positive.”
According to Smith & Williamson’s survey, the top three issues facing property professionals in the South West over the next 12 months will be the global economy, access to finance and availability of developmental land. This is different to respondents from other parts of the UK who cited the cost of taxation as a key issue.
Global macroeconomic conditions and availability of finance weighed the most heavily on the minds of executives in the industry, as 59% identified them as being among the top three factors which would negatively impact their business over the next 12 months.
“Funding has long been a critical issue for an industry where cash flow is paramount and margins are tight,” said Paul Bray. “Anecdotal evidence has suggested that, after the recent recession, loans to value are not what they once were. However, this is arguably a good thing as it may somewhat nullify the banking exposure to the peaks and troughs the sector regularly experiences.”
More than 91% of respondents felt they would choose mainstream banks as one of their most relevant sources of finance. Mr Bray said: “This is close to 5% more than the national average which was a 22% rise from 2014, indicating that banks are opening their doors and beginning to offer more to their clients but also, perhaps, that borrowers are being more realistic. We would expect this to continue as the economy remains strong.”
Development of land was also identified as one of the top three issues. Almost half (47%) said the availability of developmental land would have the biggest impact on the UK property sector over the next five years while 63% said that a co-ordinated approach to identifying under-utilised land would have the greatest positive impact on the UK property industry.
