Luton is one of the most sought after areas of the UK for buy-to-let investors, new research has revealed.

According to a survey commissioned by independent property specialist Experience Invest, 11 per cent of buy-to-let landlords and real estate investors from across the UK have Luton in their sights.

This placed the town ninth on the list, while London (35 per cent), Manchester (33 per cent) and Liverpool (25 per cent) were in the top three spots.

The research also found that 39 per cent of the 500 UK real estate investors quizzed are planning on increasing the size of their portfolio over the coming 12 months, while 11 per cent intend to reduce theirs.

The remaining investors either have no intention of buying or selling any property in 2019 (35 per cent) or will be selling some assets to then reinvest in new properties (15 per cent).

Houses are the preferred type of property to invest in (67 per cent) followed by flats (54 per cent).

New build residential properties are especially sought after (39 per cent) while 24 per cent would like to invest in student accommodation.

Jerald Solis, Business Development and Acquisitions Director at Experience Invest, said there had been a spike in interest among investors for properties in London’s commuter towns over the past five years, thanks to the stagnating rate of house price growth in the capital.

He said: “As a result, investors and homebuyers alike are looking to commuter towns, such as Luton, which offer excellent transport links into London but with greater affordability and brighter forecasts for price growth.

“As the Experience Invest research shows, Luton is attracting significant interest in 2019.

“Given the £1.5 billion regeneration currently taking place to upgrade the town centre, including the construction of new builds, this area’s property market is predicted to experience notable growth in the coming year, and this is likely to draw strong investment from buy-to-let landlords in the future.”