Blackburn has been named the top area for rental yield growth in the latest Buy-to-Let Index from online mortgage lender LendInvest.

Average rental yields in the Lancashire town rose from 4.13% to 5.69% – an increase of 37.8%. Blackburn is also the cheapest area within the top 10 for property buyers, with average house prices of just £95,000.

It was followed by Carlisle, which has seen rental yields rocket by 36.5%, with Gloucester taking third spot with a 19.4% rise in average rental yields.

Buy-to-let coldspots

At the other end of the scale average rental yields in Durham crashed by 34.2% over the 12 months from 7.09% to 4.67%, followed by Chester and Croydon, where yields plummeted 30.4% and 28.8% respectively.

Christian Faes, CEO of LendInvest, said: “Savvy property investors won’t only look out for which areas will offer the best returns right now, but are considering the best growth for the months and years to come. That means spotting areas which will become more popular in the future.

“That may be due to improved transport links, for example those towns which are due to be on the new HS2 line, or those which are due to benefit from new infrastructure projects, which will bring additional employment into the region.”