Our monthly feature by Kyle Hastings.

Hoghton is an excellent example of why semi-rural living is in high demand at the moment.

Surrounded by fields and woodland Hoghton is encompassed by the popular villages of Riley Green, Gregson Lane and Coupe Green and only a short distance to nearby Bamber Bridge which has all the modern conveniences you could need. Hoghton is ideally situated between Preston and Blackburn with only a five minute drive to the M65 motorway.

The peace and tranquillity of this beautiful semi-rural area is something renters are willing to pay a premium for, with rental prices in Hoghton coming in at around 30% above average for nearby areas.

There is an eclectic mix of property types on offer in the area, ranging from quaint stone-built cottages to high-specification 4 bed newbuild houses. The trick to investing in Hoghton is speed – properties rarely stay on the market very long and are snapped up by eagle-eyed house-hunters. Linden Homes have already sold their last plot at their Olive Farm development off Hoghton Lane – thankfully to one of our landlords!

Luxury doesn’t come cheap, and neither do houses in Hoghton. 4-bed newbuilds at Olive Farm flew off the shelves at £320,000, and the smaller cottages dotted around the area range from £190,000 to £250,000 – though most have been modernised to an impressive degree already.

Houses in this area are all rather unique and therefore it is difficult to put a rental price on an average family home – simply because houses here are anything but average. Expect yields between 6 and 7%, but the real value here is the incremental increase in the value of the houses over time – making Hoghton a perfect place for long term investors who want to see some serious equity growth.