As residential property prices start to cool in the South-east of England, the cathedral city of Lincoln has become a major hot spot, and this is having a knock-on effect on the commercial market.
Steve Batch, a partner in the Grantham office of business transfer agent County Business Sales, says that the market in Lincolnshire is similar to that in Suffolk and Norfolk four or five years ago.
By this, he means it is attracting "a log jam" of buyers from outside the county who are selling up and coming to look for lifestyle businesses such as hotels in hotspots like the Lincolnshire Wolds.
But, at this stage, there's still a big gap between prices in Lincoln and those in the South-east. "The city still represents good value for money, especially for freehold properties," Batch says.
In terms of the city centre, there are no real hotspots for licensed premises, and "anything with A3 use gets a lot of interest".
But while Lincoln is "up and coming", the surrounding area is very rural and "it's still a bit out on limb" as far as transportation is concerned.
As elsewhere, the rising prices of bricks and mortar mean that buyers of freehold properties need to have significant equity up front.
Supply is also an issue. "There's not a good deal on the market at the moment and there's a shortage of good, profitable businesses," says Batch.
Nearby coastal resorts such as Skegness and Maplethorpe tend to see a flurry of activity in late September/October, as owners put their businesses on the market at the end of the tourist season.