One-beds offer the best yields across major cities

The latest research by lettings management platform, Howsy, has found that one-bed properties are now proving the best financial investment when it comes to buy to let rental yields across the UK’s major cities.

Previous research from Howsy found that three was the magic number for rental yields, offering the highest return with a rental yield of 4.3%. While this has since increased to 5% now, the latest figures show that three-beds are no longer the best investment option.

In fact, both two and one-bed properties have leapfrogged the three-bed where rental yields are concerned, with the average two-bed providing a yield of 5.6%, while one-beds now averages a return of 6.2%.

When it comes to investing in a one-bed buy-to-let, Newcastle is your best bet, with the average yield coming in at 7.9%, closely followed by Glasgow (7.7%), Liverpool (7.1%) and Plymouth (7%), all home to yields of 7% or greater.

Newcastle and Glasgow also rank along with Belfast (6.9%) as the best spots for a two-bed buy-to-let investment, with Sheffield (6.7%) and Leeds (6.4%) also proving profitable.

While if you want to stick with the trusted three-bed, Glasgow again tops the table (6.9%) among Newcastle, Belfast, Leeds and Liverpool.

Rental yields – 1-bed
Location
1 Bedroom
Newcastle
7.9%
Glasgow
7.7%
Liverpool
7.1%
Plymouth
7.0%
Sheffield
6.7%
Leeds
6.6%
Leicester
6.6%
Nottingham
6.6%
Swansea
6.6%
Portsmouth
6.4%
Aberdeen
6.3%
Newport
6.2%
Manchester
6.0%
Cardiff
6.0%
Oxford
5.8%
Belfast
5.6%
Bournemouth
5.5%
Southampton
5.4%
Cambridge
5.4%
Birmingham
5.4%
Bristol
5.3%
Edinburgh
5.2%
London
4.7%
Average
6.2%
Rental yields – 2-bed
Location
2 Bedroom
Belfast
6.9%
Glasgow
6.9%
Newcastle
6.9%
Sheffield
6.7%
Leeds
6.4%
Liverpool
6.3%
Nottingham
6.0%
Swansea
5.9%
Portsmouth
5.8%
Aberdeen
5.5%
Manchester
5.5%
Birmingham
5.4%
Newport
5.4%
Leicester
5.3%
Cambridge
5.1%
Cardiff
5.1%
Plymouth
5.1%
Edinburgh
5.1%
Oxford
5.0%
Southampton
4.9%
Bristol
4.8%
London
4.2%
Bournemouth
4.0%
Average
5.6%
Rental yields – 3-bed
Location
3 Bedroom
Glasgow
6.9%
Newcastle
6.4%
Belfast
6.0%
Leeds
5.9%
Liverpool
5.7%
Aberdeen
5.6%
Manchester
5.5%
Swansea
5.3%
Edinburgh
5.0%
Nottingham
5.0%
Birmingham
5.0%
Sheffield
5.0%
Portsmouth
4.9%
Bristol
4.6%
Oxford
4.5%
Southampton
4.5%
Cardiff
4.5%
Newport
4.4%
Plymouth
4.3%
Leicester
4.1%
Cambridge
3.9%
London
3.9%
Bournemouth
3.0%
Average
5.0%
Rental yields – 4-bed
Location
4 Bedroom
Glasgow
6.9%
Edinburgh
6.4%
Leeds
4.8%
Newcastle
4.7%
Bristol
4.7%
Belfast
4.4%
Aberdeen
4.4%
Liverpool
4.4%
Birmingham
4.3%
Manchester
4.3%
Nottingham
4.0%
Southampton
3.9%
Portsmouth
3.9%
London
3.8%
Leicester
3.7%
Cardiff
3.7%
Sheffield
3.6%
Newport
3.6%
Oxford
3.5%
Cambridge
3.5%
Plymouth
3.4%
Swansea
2.9%
Bournemouth
1.8%
Average
4.1%
Rental yields – 5-bed+
Location
5 Bedroom
Glasgow
5.5%
Edinburgh
5.1%
Southampton
4.3%
Birmingham
4.2%
Nottingham
3.9%
Aberdeen
3.9%
Liverpool
3.8%
Manchester
3.5%
Bristol
3.4%
Newcastle
3.2%
Portsmouth
3.2%
Leeds
3.2%
Leicester
3.1%
Cambridge
3.1%
Sheffield
3.0%
Swansea
3.0%
Belfast
3.0%
Cardiff
3.0%
London
3.0%
Plymouth
2.6%
Newport
2.5%
Oxford
2.1%
Bournemouth
1.6%
Average
3.4%

Properganda PR

National and local media coverage for property businesses. Journo quotes delivered in minutes.

You May Also Enjoy

Breaking News

UK monthly property transactions for May 2025

Headline statistics from the latest transactions data include: the provisional seasonally adjusted estimate of the number of UK residential transactions in May 2025 is 81,470, 12% lower than May 2024 and 25% higher than April 2025 the provisional non-seasonally adjusted estimate of the number of UK residential transactions in May 2025 is 80,530, 13% lower than May 2024 and…
Read More
Breaking News

Construction Skills Mission Board (CSMB) shows the Government has a plan

The Construction Skills Mission Board (CSMB) held its first board meeting today (26 June 2025), where it set out a roadmap for recruiting 100,000 more construction workers a year by the end of Parliament. Richard Beresford, Chief Executive of the National Federation of Builders (NFB), said: “The Construction Skills Mission Board (CSMB) is a recognition…
Read More
Paint Stripper Tools
Estate Agent Talk

5 Strategies to Optimise Your Warehouse for Real Estate

The term fixer-upper can mean many things, from ‘slap some paint on the walls and it looks brand new’ to ‘will this building collapse if we open the front door?’ Indeed, in the dicey world of commercial property acquisition, each warehouse you buy will probably fall into both camps. Thinking about the viability of warehouses…
Read More
Breaking News

HMOs sell for up to 50% above market average

New research from Excellion Capital, the boutique debt advisory and investment firm, reveals that HMOs sell for as much as 50% above the average house price, further increasing their investment potential after it was revealed that HMOs also create rental yields of up to 12.5%. After previous research from Excellion Capital recently showed that the…
Read More
Breaking News

UK buyers struggle while 50,000 homes sit empty

As the UK housing crisis deepens, new analysis by Open Property Group exposes a worrying surge in so-called “zombie homes”- properties that sit unoccupied and deteriorating while millions struggle to access affordable housing. Key insights: 50,000+ long-term vacant homes in England alone 23,000+ of these have been empty for more than two years Estimated £13.6…
Read More
Breaking News

Breaking Property News 26/06/25

Daily bite-sized proptech and property news in partnership with Proptech-X.   The UK is Europe’s second most distressed market despite headline GDP growth Retail and Consumers Goods has emerged as the most distressed sector in Europe, with distress levels now the highest since the global financial crisis, according to the latest Weil European Distress Index (WEDI). The…
Read More