This year could be the "turning point" for UK secondary property, which could start to outperform prime, according to research from Aviva Investors.

The firm has plans to start raising a UK secondary property fund in 2013, as revealed by Estates Gazette in November.

"Since 2009, while UK prime real estate assets have performed strongly, the performance of secondary assets has been weaker, with cautious investors unwilling to take on greater income risk due to the uncertain economic outlook," said Anna Rule, UK property fund manager at Aviva.

"Over the next five years, we believe that higher-yielding sectors will drive the market-wide improvement in the UK. Our research suggests that the premium for holding secondary real estate is at high levels by historical standards and much higher than seen before 2007."

Aviva's house view is that the UK economy is entering a period of gradual recovery, meaning that investors in secondary property can benefit from a slow but sustained period of growth.

However, investors should be highly cautious about stock selection when looking at the secondary property market; income risk is still a serious concern for assets in many parts of the UK, so investors must ensure that rental growth is "sustainable", added Rule.