WEST Oxfordshire District Council plans to take advantage of the slump in the property market by spending a further £8m on becoming a landlord.

Councillors have backed plans to set aside the money as part of the district’s capital programme for 2009/10.

West Oxfordshire District Council leader, Barry Norton, said due to the current economic climate, property offered the best returns on investments.

“Now is a good time to buy if you have the money to do so, and by investing wisely at this time, we hope to make some good returns,” he said.

The £8m kitty has already been agreed, with commercial properties the target for investment.

Mr Norton said: “By earmarking that £8m ahead of time, it means that we don’t have to call a full cabinet meeting whenever we want to invest.

“We have lost out on one or two decent properties in the past because it’s taken too long to call all 49 members of the council together. Ideally the properties will be in Oxfordshire and West Oxfordshire, but if it’s the right investment and it offers a good return, then we would look further afield.”

Mr Norton said as always the state of the property would be examined closely.

He added: “Before there was not much difference between banks and property, maybe one per cent.

“Now you are looking at a five, six, seven per cent yield from property, so it makes sense to change the ratio of your investment.”

The district council first ventured into property investment in July 2008, when it purchased a three-storey office block in Between Towns Road, in Oxford, which it rents to the county council.

It paid £5.5m for this site, and Mr Norton said it was a good example of the type of investment the council was looking at.

The extra £8m of investment would almost double the value of its current property portfolio. However, Mr Norton said it was imperative to ensure a good return on investments for the district’s residents.

“It’s the interest on our investments that helps us to keep our council tax low. If we weren’t investing it like this, then council tax would be a good 30 to 40 per cent higher,” he added.

Mr Norton said this was why the chance to invest in the Witney campus of the Abingdon and Witney College’s development was such an attractive option. He added: “What would be better than investing in a college right in the centre of town, but it would have to be able to pay us a yield on our investment.”

As recently revealed by the Witney Gazette, West Oxfordshire District Council has about £60m of reserves.

However, Mr Norton said while the Learning and Skills Council (LSC) remained silent on the district council’s offer to help fund the project, nothing further could be said.